The Lying Game Season 4
by CPO Backstreet
Summary: Sequel to The Lying Game Season 3: Secrets, Lies and Betrayals. Emma and her peers are leaving school but there are more relationship traumas to come and some newcomers to town with secrets of their own. T rating for sexual content.
1. Episode 1 Chapter 1

**So, since the conclusion of my Season 3, I've been inundated with reviews begging for a Season 4. (Well, either that or saying "Your ideas are terrible and you couldn't have got the characters more wrong if you tried.") I thought I'd tied off the loose ends quite well but here's my attempt at a continuation. It'll follow the same format as the previous story, ten episodes, three chapters per episode, episode chapters posted on consecutive days with longer between episodes.**

* * *

**EPISODE ONE:** Graduation Day

**CHAPTER ONE**

Emma fiddled nervously with her graduation gown. The fact that she was already in the school hall, getting ready to mount the stage, meant it was probably the wrong time to be checking for wardrobe malfunctions. But not so long ago, before she'd come to Scotsdale, the idea of being at such a ceremony hadn't even entered her head. She looked at Sutton, next to her in line, receiving a reassuring smile in return. She attempted to find Mads and Ethan in the mass of students behind them but couldn't pick them out. Instead, she looked at the crowd, picking out Kristin and Laurel.

"Lyle, Jordan,"read out the principal. Emma turned round to see Jordan, a few students in front of her, mount the stage to correct his diploma. There was applause from the crowd and a loud whoop from Laurel.

"Matthews, Amy. Martin, James. Mercer, Emma."

Emma shook hands with the principal, accepting the roll from him and smiling at the applause as she vacated the stage. "Mercer, Sutton" was the next name called and her sister received a similar ovation, with Emma noticing that Dan was clapping louder than usual.

"Miller, Justin. Morris, Peter. Mullens, Rosemary."

The list of names continued as Emma shuffled out of view but she was too busy smiling to really pay attention. She'd done it. She'd graduated from high school.

* * *

Their friends and families were waiting when Emma, Ethan, Sutton, Mads, Char and Jordan arrived back at the school foyer, changed out of their robes. Laurel ran to Jordan and kissed him on the lips. "So, how does it feel to be out of school?"

Jordan put his arms round his girlfriend. "Pretty good,"he confirmed, kissing her again.

Emma shot a sideways glance at Mads. Her break-up with Jordan had upset her and although she'd claimed not to bear any ill against him and Laurel taking up it still had to hurt.

Kristin gestured to Emma and Sutton. "You two, hug." She opened her arms wide and the twins gratefully accepted the embrace. "Your dad would be so proud of you,"she said quietly.

Emma smiled at her. "Thanks, Mum."

Dan was shaking hands with Ethan. "Well, I admit there were times when I weren't sure you'd do this but well done, little brother. You made it."

Ethan glanced over at Emma. "Well, I had a lot of help."

Dan gave Sutton a quick kiss. "And well done to you too."

"You know what we need now?"Char asked. "Girls' night. Party." She gestured to Emma, Sutton and Mads. "Us four."

Emma glanced at Ethan, who nodded. "Go ahead,"he told her.

"Okay, I'm in,"Emma confirmed.

"Me too,"Sutton agreed.

Char looked at Mads who gave a shrug of acceptance.

As the four girls walked away, Jordan nudged Ethan. "Come on. I'll buy you a beer."


	2. Episode 1 Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

"To being legal!"Mads declared a little too loudly, clinking her wine glass with her friends'.

"A suspicious person might think you're drinking to dull the pain of seeing your ex-boyfriend cuddling up to my little sister,"Sutton remarked.

"No, I am drinking to celebrate the completion of my secondary education,"Mads replied. "Jordan Lyle has not even entered my head."

"What happened there?"Emma asked. "We all thought you and Jordan were for keeps."

"You're only just asking that now?"Sutton fired off.

Mads sighed. "It's something I've been wondering for a long time. To be honest, I think it was that house. There were just so many reminders there. Of Dad and Rebecca, of what they put us through, of all the lies there were when we first got together…In the end, it got too much. He moved back to our old flat and then Laurel moved in with him." She put an arm round Char. "And I got left with my best housemate ever."

Char smiled. "Aww, thanks." She looked at Emma. "So, when are you getting married?"

Emma was thrown by the sudden change of subject. "What?"

"Oh, have I got you mixed up again?" Char turned to Sutton. "Are you the one getting married?"

"No, that's Emma,"Sutton confirmed.

"You have been engaged for over a year,"Mads pointed out.

"And you've been living together all that time,"Char agreed.

"We haven't even talked about that yet,"Emma protested.

"Maybe you should,"Sutton suggested.

Emma thought for a moment and a slow smile spread across her face. "Maybe we should."

* * *

Jordan clinked his pint glass against Ethan's. The two of them were sat in the bar at the country club. "To finally being free of school."

"Except that your girlfriend still goes there,"Ethan added.

Jordan rolled his eyes. "Are you going to be ribbing me about Laurel all night? We've been together three months now, it's getting old."

"Sorry, I just never put you two together."

"I'd have thought you of all people would know about the attraction of Mercer girls."

Ethan narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "You are just talking about Emma, right?"

"Oh yeah, I know better than to touch the Sutton thing."

"Then yes, I do know the attraction."

"And we're not going to fall out over it?"

"Mads is a good friend, we've been through a lot together. But I don't seem why we can't be mates too."

"Good."

Ethan looked around cautiously. "You know, if Jacob sees us here, he's probably going to give us a lecture about making sure we're fit for work in the morning." Jacob Barton had been appointed as their new supervisor two months previous and hadn't been lax when it came to the supervising.

"Jacob's always giving lectures,"Jordan replied dismissively. "So, come on. You and Emma. What are your plans?"

"She's talking about going to college. I said I'd think about following her but I'm not sure if my scores will be good enough. I'll probably just stick around here. What about you?"

"Yeah, I don't think my rebellion will allow me to go to college. I'll disappoint Dad a lot more if I keep on doing an honest day's work."

Ethan clinked glasses with him again. "Well, here's to being honest."

* * *

Ethan had only been home half an hour when he heard the clattering at the door of the flat. It sounded like someone struggling to find their keys. A few moments later, Emma staggered in through the door. "I think I may have had a bit to drink,"she opined loudly.

Ethan smiled at her. "I think you may."

Emma shook her head. "Hey, Mads was far worse off than me. We had to help Char put her to bed."

"We?"

"Sutton. She just dropped me off. She is disgustingly sober." Emma suddenly adopted a mischievous smile as she sidled over to her fiance. "You know, I really fancy you, Ethan Whitehorse." She gave him a long lingering kiss. "What are you thinking?"

"Just weighing up the rights and wrongs of taking advantage of you right now."

"You can take advantage of me whenever you want."

Ethan took her by the shoulders and steered her towards the bedroom. "Come on. I think the best thing you can do in bed right now is sleep."


	3. Episode 1 Chapter 3

**Well, I got my first favourite and follow and first review for the last chapter so thank you to those people!**

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE**

"Good morning!"Kristin called out as Sutton came in the front door.

"Hi, Mum,"Sutton greeted her, going to join her at the breakfast table. She poured herself an orange juice.

"I didn't hear you come in last night."

Sutton nodded in confirmation. "I spent the night at Dan's."

"I'm worried that one day you won't come home at all." She noticed Sutton's perplexed look and went on. "I don't mean I think something will happen to you, I trust you to keep safe. It's just…Emma's living with Ethan and now Laurel's moved in with Jordan. One of these days, you'll do the same and I'll be left rattling around this place on my own."

Sutton laughed. "What, you think I'm going to move into Dan's trailer with him? That'll be the day."

Kristin looked at her in surprise. "I thought things were serious between you and Dan."

"They are. But I've spent enough time slumming it in that trailer to know that staying there permanently is a definite no-no." Sutton grabbed a piece of toast from the rack. "Thanks for this, Mum, I'll go and have a shower. Something else I couldn't do if I moved in with Dan."

As Kristin watched her daughter leave, she had a sudden nagging feeling of concern.

* * *

Emma groaned loudly, massaging her temples, as Ethan placed a glass of water with an aspirin tablet dissolving in it in front of her on the breakfast table. "My only comfort at the moment is that Mads is feeling worse than I am."

"Don't be sure,"Ethan teased her. "Mads sure knows how to drink."

Emma groaned even louder. "Actually, Char said something last night."

"That's not like her,"Ethan joked.

Emma glared at him. "Ha ha. I mean she said something that got me thinking."

"What was that?"

"She asked when we were getting married."

Ethan was silent for a moment. "What did you say?"

"That we hadn't set a date."

Ethan nodded. "Well, that's right, we haven't."

"Yes but when are we going to?"Emma persisted. "We always said we'd wait until we finished school but that's happened. Are we waiting until I finish college or until we're twenty-one or…or what?"

"Well...I guess that's something we need to talk about,"Ethan admitted. "But first, I need to go to work."

* * *

"Mads, get up!"Char called up the stairs for about the third time that morning. The usual response was an indistinct mumbling that was either Mads claiming she would or Mads telling her to go drown herself. Char's attempts to work out which one it was were interrupted by a firm knock on the door. She answered it to find a man and a woman who appeared to be in their late forties standing there. "Hey, what can I do for you?"

"I'm looking for Madeleine Rybak?"the woman queried.

Char nodded. "Right, yeah. She's still in bed. Mads, visitors!"she called out. There was an awkward pause. "She'll be along in a minute." The couple nodded, shifting uncomfortably.

Char looked at the pair. They were both fairly tall and dark-haired, with the man having the first few streaks of grey, and dressed expensively. There was something oddly familiar about them, especially the woman. "I'm sorry, do I know you?"

"It's Charlotte, isn't it?"the woman asked. "It's been a while."

"Been a while since what?"

Before the woman could answer, Mads came downstairs, draping a gown over the clothes she'd slept in. She stopped when she saw the newcomers and stared at them in disbelief. "_Mum_?"

* * *

**End of Episode One**


	4. Episode 2 Chapter 1

**Had a few problems posting the last chapter but hopefully that's been cleared up. Thank you for all the reviews, favourites and follows. Weirdly I'm still getting reviews on the previous story asking for a Season 4, so hopefully they'll find this soon.**

**One of the problems with starting from scratch rather than carrying on with the series' plotlines is it's harder to hit the ground running. But I promise things will happen eventually, it's not just going to be about domestic arrangements.**

* * *

**EPISODE TWO:** Old Faces in New Places

**CHAPTER ONE**

Mads stared at the couple for a long while before suddenly seeming to come to. "Ah, Char, you remember my mother, Caroline. This is her husband, Graham."

Char struggled to remember the Rybak family history. "You're Thayer's father, right? I mean, birth father or whatever."

"Yes, that's right,"Graham confirmed awkwardly.

"Thought we'd have seen you before now what with…" Char suddenly realised she was being indiscreet. "Anyway, how have you been?"

Caroline was staring at Mads. "Are you going to ask how your brother is?"

"I still haven't quite worked out what you're doing here."

"Aren't I allowed to visit my children once in a while?"

"Well, it's been eight years so I'd kind of forgot."

"We've been to see Thayer,"Graham interjected. "He's wondering why you haven't been to visit him."

"I went once,"Mads protested.

"That was over a year ago,"Caroline maintained.

"I have to live in this town, Mum. I know Thayer's my brother but he killed two people, three if you count the one that deserved it, and I'm friends with people that were close to them. I hope he's all right but I need to keep my distance."

"And I can't change your mind?"

Mads folded her arms and stared at her mother defiantly. "No."

"Then I guess I'll have to leave it like that."

Mads scoffed. "So, that's it? You disappear out of my life for another eight years?"

"No, we were planning to stay for a while."

Mads was surprised at the revelation. "You mean here? In this house?"

"If you've no objection."

Mads looked at Char who shrugged helplessly. She sighed. "No."

* * *

Ethan came out of the bedroom, pulling on his uniform, and gave Emma a quick kiss. "See you when I get back."

"Um, are we going to talk about what we were talking about before?"Emma asked. Ethan gave her a curious look. "_The wedding_,"she stressed.

Ethan sighed. "Look, Emma, if you haven't figured out that I want to marry you by now then…well, I haven't been doing a very good job of making my feelings known."

"Yeah, okay, fair enough,"Emma accepted. "It's just…I really want to be your wife."

Ethan put his arms round her waist, pulling her close to him. "And I really want you to be my wife. But I also really want to keep my job."

Emma nodded, conceeding the point for now. "Okay."

He kissed her again. "I'll see you later."

* * *

Jordan was lying on top of Laurel and kissing her, both of them still in their bed clothes. "Don't you have to get to work?"Laurel asked, running her fingers through his hair.

"I'd rather stay here,"Jordan remarked in between kisses.

"I'd rather you stayed here too but you need that job to keep me in the style to which I've become accustomed."

Jordan grinned at her. "Oh, is that the only reason you're with me?"

"Dead straight."

He jumped out of bed. "Well, you're lucky I've always had a thing for abusive women."

Laurel threw a pillow at him.

* * *

Ethan was dropping some keys off at the bar when Jordan came in. "What happened to you?"Ethan asked him. "You didn't have any more to drink than me last night."

"Yeah, Laurel kind of distracted me this morning."

Ethan held up his hand. "I really don't want to know any more. You'd better look out though, Jacob's on the warpath."

Jordan shrugged dismissively. "I can deal with him."

"Lyle!"bellowed a voice across the room.

Jordan turned round to see Jacob striding towards him. "Ah, hi, Mr. Barton."

"I haven't seen you this morning."

Jordan considered lying but knew that would only make things worse. "I only just got here."

Jacob sniffed. "I'll have your wages docked accordingly. And don't make a habit of it, Lyle. I won't tolerate slacking here."

Jordan sagged as Jacob walked away from them. "Told you,"Ethan remarked.


	5. Episode 2 Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

"Latte, no cream, no sugar,"Sutton told the server before taking a seat at the counter next to Emma. "So how are you finding life after school?"

"Much the same as when I was at school so far but it'll probably hit me at some point. What about you?"

"Well, I'm still living with Mum, unlike both my sisters, which isn't helping me feel like an adult."

"You're thinking of moving out?"

"Eventually, yeah, but I need somewhere to move out to."

Unnoticed by either of them, Dan entered the coffee shop behind them and requested a coffee from the server. He was about to make himself known to the two sisters when he heard Sutton say,"Mum wondered if I was going to move in with Dan."

Curious, Dan kept quiet, wanting to hear more.

"Are you going to?"Emma asked.

Sutton laughed. "Seriously? It was bad enough having to spend all those weeks in the cabin when you were pretending to be me. You think I'm going to end up as Mrs. Trailer?"

Hearing the words felt to Dan curiously akin to having a knife thrust through him. He accepted his order and left without a word.

"But you do love him?"Emma asked.

"Yeah, I love him,"Sutton admitted. "And I do want to live with him eventually. He just needs to find somewhere better to live first."

* * *

Kristin and Char had run into each other at the country club gym and the subject of the new guests at the Rybak residence had come up, a subject that Kristin approached with a certain amount of wariness."So how does Mads feel about her mum being back?"she asked as they left the building.

"She's a bit thrown by it all,"Char acknowledged. "Do you remember them?"

"I knew Caroline years ago,"Kristin confirmed. "Don't think I ever met her husband." Thinking back, things had always been slightly frosty between her and Caroline. She had an uncomfortable feeling that the other woman had been all too aware of her feelings for Alec.

Char was about to answer when her attention was caught by a man walking in her direction. "Dad?" She threw her arms around her father in delight. "I wasn't expecting to see you here!"

"I thought I'd surprise you. Hi, Kristin. It's been a long time."

"It certainly has, Peter,"Kristin confirmed, giving him a welcoming if slightly cautious smile. After all, he was yet another person tangentially involved in Ted, Rebecca and Alec's conspiracy.

"You weren't planning to stay with us, were you?"Char asked, concerned. "It's just Mads' mother is there now and it'll be a bit full."

"No, I've got a room here at the club,"Peter explained. "I was hoping to stay at our old house but it's been left in such a mess that I've had to get a full valet service. You're welcome to join me there when it's finished if you like."

Char hesitated for a moment then shook her head. "I think I'll stay with Mads."

* * *

Sutton hurried into the trailer, threw her arms around Dan's neck and kissed him. "Did I mention that I've missed you?"

Dan scowled, removing her arms gently but firmly. "I'm surprised you let yourself be seen here."

Sutton looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I heard what you said to Emma." He saw Sutton was still confused and went on. "About how you didn't want to move in here?"

Sutton laughed. "Well, yeah, who would?" She suddenly seemed to realise she was on thin ice and amended her comment. "I mean, it's a bit small for two."

"We managed okay when Ethan was living here. And Theresa was happy enough to move in."

Sutton glared at him. "I'm not Theresa."

"I know you're not,"replied Dan in a tone which suggested he didn't consider the fact anything to be proud of.

"And I'm not going to let you hold the fact that I don't do everything that she does against me!"

"This isn't about what Theresa would and wouldn't do. This is about you and me. This place, it's a part of who I am. You don't get to pick and choose which parts you like. If that's what you want then…" He trailed off.

"Then what?"Sutton prompted.

"Then I think it's best if we end this."

Sutton glared at him. "Fine,"she snapped and walked out, neither of them aware just how heavily the decision hung on the other.


	6. Episode 2 Chapter 3

**Sorry, sorry, sorry, completely forgot to upload this yesterday. Thank you to everyone that's following it.**

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE**

Emma grabbed a box of tissues from the kitchen and headed back into the living room, placing them in front of Sutton. "I'm sorry,"she said quietly.

"Why?"Sutton asked, taking one of the tissues and dabbing her eyes with it. "Everyone knew this was going to happen."

"That's not true!"Emma protested. "I thought you and Dan were really good together."

Sutton sighed. "Yeah, me too. Shows how much I know. You know, I am through with guys. Every time I find one I really like, I end up feeling like this. First there was Ethan and he preferred you. And now Dan prefers his dead fiance to me! I'm just fed up of putting myself out there and getting hurt."

Emma put her arm round her sister, drawing her into an awkward one-armed hug. "You'll find someone eventually,"she said quietly. "You're a good person, Sutton. Don't give up on someone else realising that."

* * *

Ethan was finishing up at the club for the night when a man he hadn't seen before came in. "Can I help you?"

The man looked at him cautiously. "Are you Ethan Whitehorse?"

"Yeah, that's right."

"I'm Graham Caldron. Thayer Rybak's father."

Ethan stiffened at the mention of the name. He was aware that Emma felt some sympathy towards Thayer but he'd never shared it. He'd seen how much Theresa's murder had hurt Dan. That above all else was something he could never forgive Thayer for. "What do you want?"he asked.

"To talk about Thayer."

"That's not something I'm keen on doing."

"Please, Ethan. I know Thayer did some terrible things but he deserves to be given a second chance at life."

"Yeah? A lot of people don't get that chance. As far as I'm concerned, Thayer should be left to rot in jail and the fact he played the insanity card and got sent to some cushy asylum just shows how being rich means you can get away with murder."

"And that's your final word on the subject?"Graham asked.

"It's subject closed as far as I'm concerned."

"All right. But you can't say I didn't try."

* * *

Jordan was walking away from the building after work when he heard a noise in the bushes. He stopped and looked closely. "Anyone there?" He had just convinced himself it was nothing when the blow struck him on the back of the head and he crumpled.

He just managed to hear the sound of running footsteps before consciousness faded and he was left lying there in the dark.

* * *

**End of Episode Two**


	7. Episode 3 Chapter 1

**Thank you for all the follows, favourites and reviews I've picked up since the last episode. Even though I am still receiving far more attention for the first story. Astonishingly, people actually seeming to be signing up to the site purely to bookmark these stories which is incredibly humbling so a big thank you.**

* * *

**EPISODE THREE:** A Date to Remember

**CHAPTER ONE**

Since first moving to Scotsdale, Emma had spent far too much time at the hospital. It was a fact she was forced to reflect on as she, Sutton, Mads and Laurel hurried into reception, Laurel in the lead as they approached the desk. "How's Jordan Lyle?"she asked.

The receptionist checked her computer. "Are you relatives?"

"I'm his girlfriend. We live together."

The receptionist nodded. "Take a seat and I'll get a doctor to speak with you shortly."

The four girls sat in the waiting area. Emma placed a comforting hand on Laurel's leg. "He'll be okay. Ethan said the ambulance got to him really quickly."

"I don't know what I'd do without him. I love him, Emma." Laurel buried her face in her older sister's shoulder.

Emma glanced over at Mads, who seemed to be struggling to hide how upset she was. She nodded towards Sutton, who seemed to take several seconds to realise what her twin was tying to tell her before awkwardly patting Mads' hand.

A female doctor approached them down the corridor. "You're here about Jordan Lyle?"

Everyone stood up. "Yes,"Laurel answered.

The doctor smiled at her. "Don't worry, it's good news. He needed stitches for a cut on the head and he's got a mild concussion so we're going to keep him in overnight for observation but he's going to be fine."

Laurel breathed a sigh of relief. "Can he have visitors?"

"Yes but just for a short time and only two of you."

"Emma, can you come with me?"

Emma wavered uncertainly and looked at Mads, worried about usurping her. Mads gave a brief nod and Emma took Laurel's hand. "Of course I will."

* * *

Laurel hugged Jordan so tightly when she saw him that Emma was afraid she was going to crack his ribs. "I was so scared,"she said quietly.

Jordan grinned. "Hey, you should know my head's thicker than that."

"I can't believe someone would do this to you."

"Well, maybe I short changed them. Or scratched their car when parking it."

Laurel bit her lip nervously. "I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you."

Jordan stroked her face gently. "Likewise."

Emma watched them. She'd never been entirely comfortable with the speed with which Jordan had moved from Mads to Laurel. But seeing them together, she realised for the first time how much he loved her sister. She was pleased. Laurel deserved someone who loved her.

Jordan seemed to notice that he was the focus of her attention. "Something wrong?"

"No,"Emma answered. "Nothing wrong. Just watching the two of you."

* * *

Sutton was sat in the waiting room with Mads. "It's all right, you know,"she told her.

Mads looked at her in confusion. "What is?"

"It's all right for you to still worry about Jordan. Even though you're not together anymore. You meet someone and you think they're the one, think that's where your future is. And then it turns out you were wrong, it's over. But you can't switch those feelings off. You can't stop caring about them."

Mads looked closely at her. "Are we still talking about me?"

"Can I move in with you and Char?"

Mads blinked at the abrupt change of subject. "Where did that come from?"

"I don't know. Can I?"

"Well, Mum and Graham are using the guest room at the moment but if you don't mind them being around…"

Sutton waved a hand dismissively. "We'll get on fine."

* * *

Dan found Ethan waiting outside the trailer when he arrived home. "You don't still live here, do you?"

"Emma's still at the hospital,"Ethan explained. "Thought I'd come and check how you went."

Dan sighed. "At the moment…we've got nothing. Jordan didn't see who hit him, there were no other witnesses, no security cameras directed at that area, we've yet to locate the weapon and the assailant didn't leave any forensic traces. We can't even find a motive."

"Tough break."

"Yeah." Dan noticed Ethan shifting uncomfortable. "Was there something else?"

"Sutton."

Dan sighed. "Something else you got from Emma, I suppose?"

"I just figured you might want to talk."

"What's there to say? You went out with Sutton too. You know what she's like."

"She was a challenge,"Ethan admitted. "But you were with her a lot longer than I was. And I thought she'd grown up a bit since then."

"So did I. But turns out that underneath it all she's still the same spoilt girl who thinks she's too good for people. And I really don't have time for that." Dan inside the trailer, leaving Ethan alone.


	8. Episode 3 Chapter 2

**Thank you for all the reviews, follows and favourites!**

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO**

It was the next morning and Ethan was wiping down tables at the country club when Jacob appeared. "Any word on your friend?"the supervisor asked.

"They let him out of hospital this morning,"Ethan answered. "He should be back at work tomorrow."

Jacob nodded. "Have they any idea what happened?"

"Well, someone hit him but apart from that…"

"I've asked around the staff but no-one saw anything."

"Thanks."

"Your brother's the local cop, isn't he?"

Ethan nodded. "He didn't find anything either."

"Well, I'll keep asking around. Chat to the members and residents. Someone somewhere must have seen something."

* * *

Kristin regarded the sight of Sutton standing at the door with her bags and sighed. "You know, it was only yesterday that you were telling me you weren't going to be moving out any time soon."

"I know,"Sutton admitted. "But things have changed since then."

"You mean you've broken up with Dan?"

Sutton sighed. "Yep. The latest in a long line of Sutton Mercer disasters."

"I'm just worried that this feels a lot like running away."

"I'm not running away, Mum, I'm only going down the road." Sutton could tell that Kristin wanted more. "I messed things up with Dan because…to be honest, I don't even know how I did it. Being too honest."

There was a slight twinkle in Kristin's eye. "That's a problem we never thought you'd have."

"Hey, I've always been honest! Except for the twin thing and the birth mother thing and the lying game stuff and the fake boyfriend…but I have never said anything that I don't mean."

"I still don't see why you suddenly want to move out."

"Because…because I want to prove that I can. I mean, even Laurel can manage to leave home and not make a complete mess of it. I want to stop being this little princess that has everything done for her. Not that I don't appreciate you doing things for me, because I do. But I need to stop."

Kristin smiled at her. "Well, if you've given it that much thought…then you have my blessing."

Sutton gave her a hug. "I love you, Mum, okay? And I'll be back here asking for help far more than I should be."

"And you will always be welcome."

Mads and Char suddenly appeared in the doorway. "Hey, roomie!"Char greeted Sutton, giving her a hug.

Mads looked from one to the other of them uncertainly. "Have we interrupted a moment?"

"No, you're just in time to help me with my bags." Sutton handed the largest one to Char and a medium sized one to Mads, picking up two smaller ones herself. She smiled at Kirstin. "Bye, Mum."

* * *

Emma was in the middle of making dinner, stirring away at a pan full of pasta sauce, when she heard the front door. She peered round the kitchen doorway to confirm it was Ethan arriving home. "Dinner will be ten minutes!"

Ethan came through and took her by the arm, turning down the heat on the sauce as he did so. "That's good,"he replied, leading her towards the table. He sat down, pulling her into his lap. "Because with Jordan and everything, we never got a chance to finish our conversation, did we?"

Emma looked slightly confused. "What conversation?"

"The one about getting married."

"Oh. Yeah."

"Because I think you're right."

Emma felt her pulse rate suddenly quicken. She looked at Ethan cautiously, not quite sure what he was saying. "About..?"

Ethan looked at her earnestly. "Emma, I love you. And I want to marry you, to spend the rest of my life with you. And I want that to start as soon as possible."

Emma swallowed hard. "How soon?"she asked quietly.

"How does three weeks sound?"

Emma smiled broadly and kissed her husband-to-be.


	9. Episode 3 Chapter 3

**Thank you for all the follows, favourites and reviews!**

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE**

They had wanted to tell Kristin first and she had insisted on calling Sutton and Laurel straightaway. Ethan had rung Dan and as a result the entire Mercer/Whitehorse clan had ended up gathered in the Mercer household. Dan was filling everyone's glasses with champagne, only looking slightly awkward when he reached Sutton.

"Speech! Speech!"Laurel shouted, jumping up and down excitedly.

"Well, what is there to say?"Emma asked. "We always knew we wanted to get married. It's just we're finally going to do it."

Ethan slipped his arm round her. "I couldn't wait any longer to make this one my wife." He kissed her gently before looking at Dan. "You still up for being best man?"

"Wild horses wouldn't stop me,"Dan confirmed.

Emma gestured to Sutton and Laurel. "And you two are still okay to be bridesmaids?"

She was answered with a pair of nods. "You still asking Jordan and Mads to be in the main party?" Laurel asked.

Sutton rolled her eyes. "Just how many ex-couples are you planning on having? Why don't you invite Justin along and complete the set?"

"I'm sure you'll all just be there to support Emma and Ethan,"Kristin suggested.

"Of course,"Sutton confirmed, taking a large drink from her champagne.

Emma put her glass down. "Well, thanks for this, everyone, but Ethan and I have things to do."

Ethan looked at her in confusion. "We do?"

"We do,"Emma confirmed, taking his hand and dragging him from the house.

"What do you think that was about?"Laurel asked.

Sutton shrugged.

* * *

Ethan had parked the car outside the country club and stood resting against the bonnet as Emma paced around in front of him. "So Jordan was found here?"she asked.

Ethan nodded. "Yeah, I came out here after I'd finished clearing up. I saw him and called out for Jacob, he turned up a few moments later."

"And he hadn't been moved. And we think his attacker was hidden in the bushes. Now, I really can't think of any reason why they'd attack Jordan unless it was him they were after, specifically."

"Who'd want to hurt Jordan?"Ethan asked.

"His dad maybe? They didn't get on and there was all that stuff with his brother. Or maybe one of the other guys involved in the car crash?"

"But all of that was years ago,"Ethan protested. "Why would they come after him now?"

Emma thought for a moment then shook her head. "I don't know."

"And why aren't we leaving this to Dan?"

"Because he means a lot to Laurel and Mads and if someone's hurt them, I want to know who."

Ethan smiled at her. "Still trying to make the world a better place, huh?"

Emma hugged him. "You'd better believe it."

* * *

Char wandered across the landing of the country club, checking the room number on the piece of paper she was holding. She was surprised to see a familiar figure come out of one of the rooms. "Justin, hi! I didn't know you were staying here."

Justin nodded awkwardly. "Yeah, the new manager let me have one of the rooms." He shifted on his feet, seemingly wanting to get away but not wanting to appear rude. "So, what are you doing here?"

"Well, I was looking for…" Char broke into a wide grin as another familiar face appeared round the corner. "Dad!"

Justin seemed relieved at the excuse to leave. "Well, see you later then,"he declared.

"Who was that?"Peter asked once Justin had left.

"Oh, just someone I went to school with,"Char said dismissively. "I fancied him once but he started dating Laurel and then it all turned a bit messy. Did you see all that stuff last night?"

"What stuff?"

"Jordan, Mads' old boyfriend and Laurel's current boyfriend, got attacked just outside. He's okay but it was a huge worry for a bit."

"No, sorry, I didn't see anything. I was in my room. All night." He put his arm round her shoulder. "Come on, let's go and grab that lunch."

As they walked away, Justin appeared back from behind the corner and looked after them. The expression on his face showed a keen interest but in which of them and for what reason were questions that only he could answer.

* * *

**End of Episode Three**


	10. Episode 4 Chapter 1

**Thank you as ever for all new reviews, follows and favourites!**

* * *

**E****PISODE FOUR:** Silence of the Liars

**CHAPTER ONE**

Emma and Laurel were both supporting Jordan as they arrived back at the flat. "You know, I'm not crippled,"he reminded them.

"I know,"Laurel replied with a grin. "Just looking for any excuse to put my arms around you."

Emma coughed slightly, reminding them of her presence, and stepped away from Jordan. "You're lucky you weren't more seriously hurt."

"Good job my head's so thick,"Jordan replied. "I just wish we knew who did it."

"Don't worry, we'll find out,"Laurel answered. "Emma's already on it."

Jordan looked quizzically at Emma who was suddenly awkward. "Well, we've looked into it,"she admitted. "But we haven't really found out anything. And given how long it took us to notice something was up with Thayer, I can't promise we'll get an answer any time soon."

"She's just saying that,"Laurel replied, brimming with confidence. "You'll see. Ethan's doing some digging around for her right now."

* * *

"What are you doing?"

The voice broke Ethan's concentration and caused him to look round. Jacob had entered the reception where he was in the middle of looking through the log books. Ethan considered telling a lie but then realised that the truth wasn't exactly unreasonable. "I was looking at the members and guest lists for the evening Jordan was attacked. The person who did it might have come in here."

"The police have already looked over those lists,"Jacob pointed out.

"I know,"Ethan admitted,"but I know Jordan better than they do. I thought maybe I'd spot a name that they wouldn't notice, someone who might have a reason to hurt Jordan that they don't know about."

Jacob looked at him, his opinion of the idea unreadable from his expression. "Have you found anything?"

Ethan sighed and closed the book. "No."

"Then perhaps you could get on with the work you're supposed to be doing."

* * *

Kristin looked around the coffee bar until she picked out the person she'd been called there to meet: Peter. She waved at him before making her way to the table. "Do you want a coffee?"he asked. Kristin nodded and Peter gestured for a server to bring the drink over.

"What's this about, Peter?"Kristin asked.

Peter steepled his fingers, pondering his answer. "It's about Char. I know letting her come back here was the best thing. I tried to be there for her after her mother's breakdown but…I guess I'd been away too long. Then there was all that business with Rebecca and I knew she wanted to be with her friends. But it's just increased the distance between us."

"I know that she's glad to have you back in her life,"Kristin noted. "But what do you think I can do?"

Peter gestured to her. "Just that. I know you've always kept an eye on her. I…I want you to tell me about my daughter."

Kristin smiled. "She's a good-hearted girl. A loyal friend. And maybe a bit insecure deep down, I don't think she's ever had a boyfriend that's lasted that long. But really, if you want to get to know her, you need to…get to know her. To spend time with her."

"Well, maybe I'll do that. But there's a few other things I need to do first."

* * *

Char knocked on the door of her father's room and waited. And waited. And waited. She checked her watch.

"He's not there,"announced Justin, who was standing in the doorway of his own room. "I saw him go out a couple of hours ago."

"Oh,"Char answered in surprise, unable to think of anything else to say.

"Did you have plans to meet?"

"No, I just thought he was going to be here today. Didn't think he had anything else to go." She thought for a moment about what to do next. "Well, I'll go now,"she decided at last.

"Char!"Justin called after her, causing her to stop. "Are you still friends with the Mercers?"

"Ah, yeah."

"I…" Justin paused, as though considering whether to say anything further. "Do you want to go out some time?"

"Oh!" Char looked at him. She'd thought him attractive when he first came to town but then he'd started going out with Laurel and she'd forgotten about it. "Yeah, that'd be quite nice." She looked at him in sudden confusion. "Did you mean now?"

"No, but soon though. Give me your number and I'll give you a call."

* * *

Ethan stood outside the club, checking his watch. He was meant to be meeting Emma after work but there was no sign of her. Had she been held up doing something?

He didn't know the rock had been thrown at him, let alone see who was responsible. He just felt it impact with the back of his head, then everything went black.


	11. Episode 4 Chapter 2

**Thank you to everyone who's added this to their favourites and follows.**

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO**

Sutton was sitting next to Emma as her sister drove towards the country club, shooting looks across at her every now and then. "Will you stop with the serious expressions?"

"You should be as worried as me,"Emma protested. "You know how crazy things can get."

"Hey, we don't know this is craziness,"Sutton argued. "So Jordan got hit on the head. Could just have been random."

"Or it could be something to do with…"

"To do with what? Everyone knows we're twins, everyone that was involved in the cover-up is dead."

"No, they're not. Alec must have paid dozens of people to keep quiet about things they did."

"And all of them are probably keeping them heads down,"Sutton retorted. "Anyway, why hurt Jordan? It's not like he knows anything."

"Maybe as a warning?"Emma suggested as she pulled into the club's drive. "Or maybe…"

"Emma, stop!"Sutton shouted.

Emma automatically slammed her foot down on the brake, turning back to what was in front of them. And then she saw what Sutton had seen: A body sprawled in the drive in front of them. And then she realised who it was. "Ethan!"she shouted, jumping out of the car and rushing to his side.

Sutton got out of the car more cautiously. "Is he all right?"

"He's breathing,"Emma said in relief. "Get an ambulance!"

Sutton took out her mobile and dialled the number. "Ambulance. Chelsea Creek Country Club."

* * *

Mads stood in the living room of the Rybak house, talking into her mobile. "Oh my god, is he all right? Well, just hang tight, I'll be right down there."

Graham and Caroline had entered the house during the latter part of the conversation. "Is something wrong?"Caroline asked.

Mads nodded. "That was Emma. Ethan was attacked outside the club. He's in hospital."

"Serves him right,"Graham said dismissively.

"Graham,"Caroline attempted to interject placatingly but Graham shook his head.

"I'm sorry but I'm just speaking my mind."

"How can you say that?"Mads demanded.

"How can you not?"Graham returned. "Look at what's happened to this family because of them."

"Ethan and Emma are my friends!"Mads replied angrily. "They've been more of a family to me than you have." She looked at Caroline. "Either of you."

"It's because of them that your brother's been locked up,"Graham replied. "And they'd be quite happy to leave him there."

"Oh, and you had nothing to do with it?"Mads asked scornfully. "If Thayer's messed up, it's because of you two swanning in and out of his life whenever you feel like it. You don't have the right to turn up here and start passing judgement on my friends. Now I'm going to be with them, whether that meets your approval or not."

* * *

By the time Mads arrived at the hospital, Emma, Sutton, Laurel and Jordan were all sat in the waiting room. "How is he?"she asked.

"He's having a scan to see if there's any damage,"Emma replied shakily. "He came round while we were with him and they think he just needs stitches but…"

"They say he was lucky,"Sutton noted. "It could have been a lot worse. Whoever hit him probably didn't care what state he ended up in."

Mads shivered slightly as she took her seat. "Has anyone called Dan?"

Emma nodded. "We told him Ethan was probably going to be okay so he decided to make sure they check out the crime scene properly before coming down here."

"I've been trying to ring Mum,"Laurel added. "But it keeps going to message bank."

"So, are we going to ask the obvious question?"Jordan wondered. "Do we think the guy that hit Ethan was the guy that hit me?"

"There might not be a connection,"Mads argued. "I mean, they might be targetting country club workers or just hitting anyone in the car park. It doesn't have to be anything else."

"Look, I made all the arguments earlier,"Sutton said. "But I think we have to face facts about the thing Ethan and Jordan most have in common."

"Us,"Emma said quietly. "This group."

"Everyone in town likes Ethan though,"Laurel argued.

"Not everyone,"Mads said reluctantly.

Four pairs of eyes turned on her. "What do you know?"Emma asked.

"When I told Graham what had happened to Ethan…he was pleased. Because of what happened with Thayer."

"Woah, wait, hang on, back up,"Laurel requested. "Are we saying that this is connected to Thayer? Some revenge thing?"

"Could Graham have been the one who hit Ethan?"Emma asked.

"I don't know,"Mads admitted. "He came home with Mum but whether they were together all the time…"

"So where does this leave us?"Jordan asked.

"It leaves us with a lead to follow up,"Emma said. "And something I should have done a long time ago."

"Woah, wait, hang on,"Sutton protested. "I am not liking the sound of this."

"Why?"Laurel asked. "What's she talking about?"

Emma took a deep breath. "I need to see Thayer."


	12. Episode 4 Chapter 3

**CHAPTER THREE**

Ethan slowly opened his eyes and focused on the girl sitting next to him. "Sutton,"he said at last.

Sutton smiled slightly. "You've got better at that."

"Helps that you two don't keep swapping over anymore. Where is Emma?"

Sutton hesitated. She had a feeling that Ethan wouldn't be too happy if he knew Emma was at the psychiatric hospital. "She's busy investigating, you know what she's like."

"I know what _you're_ like. Surprised you didn't go with her."

"Well, too many people and you just get in the way. Someone had to keep an eye on you."

Ethan nodded, accepting the explanation. "So, the police got any idea who's behind all this?"

"Perhaps I should answer that one,"Dan suggested as he appeared in the doorway. He nodded in the direction of his ex-girlfriend, who had tensed up slightly at his entrance. "Hi, Sutton."

"Dan,"she responded formally.

"What have you found?"Ethan asked.

Dan sighed. "Nothing. Not even the rock that you were hit with. We're guessing the attacker took it away with him."

"Or her?"Sutton asked.

"Well, Ethan was hit with some force but yeah, it could have been a her."

"But it was definitely the same person that hit Jordan?"Ethan checked.

"We're working on that assumption but aside from the similarities and the fact it happened in the same place, there's nothing to tie them together. So, that's the formalities over, how are you?"

Ethan grinned. "Sore head but I've had worse after parties."

"I'll, er, leave you to it,"Sutton decided, heading out. Ethan nodded pointedly to Dan and he went after her.

"Sutton?"he called.

Sutton stopped with some reluctance and looked back at him. "What's up?"

Dan hesitated, unsure how to proceed. "I haven't seen you in a while."

"Well, that's not surprising, is it?"Sutton asked tartly. "I'm the spoilt little rich girl. It was hard enough for me coming to your trailer when we were dating, I'm not going to drop by now."

"I didn't say that,"Dan protested.

"Maybe but it's what you think. We were obviously never going to work out, it's a wonder we lasted as long as we did."

"So you're okay living with Mads and Char?"

"Sure I am." Sutton sighed. "Look, I'll see you around, okay? You just go check on Ethan."

Dan watched her walk away with no small amount of regret.

* * *

Emma, Laurel and Mads sat together at a table in the visitors' area. Emma shot a glance at her sister. "You don't have to be here."

"Hey, my boyfriend got hit as well,"Laurel pointed out. "Plus I've got the whole history thing with Thayer."

"Okay, but…if it gets too much, just leave."

The door at the far end of the room opened and Thayer was admitted, accompanied by two orderlies. His gaze fixed on Emma immediately and he bounded over to her. "You came!"he exclaimed. "I always knew you would." He went to hug Emma but she took a step backwards. He looked slightly crestfallen and seemed to register for the first time that she wasn't alone. "Mads, Laurel, hi."

The girls sat down and Thayer did likewise. "You know Mum's back in Scotsdale?"Mads asked. "With her husband."

"My dad, you mean?"Thayer asked. He was fidgeting, his body jerking every now and then in an involuntary manner. "Yeah, they come and see me every now and then. How've you been?"

"Ethan's in hospital,"Emma told him.

Thayer stared at her for a moment. "Am I supposed to care?"

"Someone hit him on the head."

"Jordan too,"Laurel added.

Thayer looked from one to the other, sudden anger flaring up. "That's why you're here, isn't it? You think I sneaked out of here, hit them and then sneaked back in? All this time and the only reason you come to see me is because of Ethan?"

"I'm sorry,"Mads said quietly. "I should have come before. But we need to know…"

"What? Still can't figure things out without my help? Well, you're on your own with this one."

"Please,"Emma pleaded. "Do you know who did it?"

Thayer stared hard at her. "You know, I've thought about killing Ethan so many times. It could have been him instead of Derek or instead of Rebecca. It would have been really satisfying to cave in his pathetic skull and make him realise that he had no right to take you away from me." He shook his head violently as though clearing his thoughts. "But I don't know anything about this. Whatever it is you've got mixed up in, it's not my fault this time."

* * *

Kristin was just arriving home, heading up the drive towards the house, and was surprised to see someone coming in the opposite direction, from the house. "Peter! What are you doing here?"

Peter stopped in his tracks. "I was looking for you,"he explained. "But when there was no answer I figured you weren't here."

"I was over at Marjorie's." Kristin took out her keys and gestured up the drive. "Come in."

She led the way into the house, Peter following close behind her. "I just wanted to ask your advice…"

But Kristin was barely listening. The moment she'd stepped into the house, some sixth sense had told her that something was wrong, different. She scanned the room until her eyes alighted on the sideboard and the blank space on top of it. She walked towards it slowly. Peter realised something was wrong and stopped talking.

"There was a photo here,"Kristin explained. "Me and the girls: Sutton, Emma and Laurel. It was taken last Christmas."

"Did you move it somewhere?"Peter suggested.

"No, I'd remember."

"Well, maybe one of the girls came back and took it."

"Without asking?" Kristin turned to look at him, unable to quite believe what she was about to say. "I think someone's stolen it. I think someone's been here in the house."

* * *

**End of Episode Four**


	13. Episode 5 Chapter 1

**Thank you for all the reviews, favourites and follows! I'm still getting more feedback for the first story than this one and they still seem to be having trouble noticing this one's here so I've mentioned the fact there's a sequel in the summary in the vague hope people will check my profile or just glance up the Lying Game fan fiction home page a few stories. If you've just done that, welcome aboard!**

**I did have second thoughts about breaking up Jordan and Mads but I needed to shake the relationship up a bit and I thought Laurel deserved a bit of loving after I turned her love life into a train wreck in the first story: Pairing her up with Justin or Baz was too obvious so Jordan was the ideal choice.**

* * *

**EPISODE FIVE:** Target Acquired

**CHAPTER ONE**

Ethan's hospital room was rather full at the moment and it had taken a lot of persuading for the staff to allow them all in: Emma, Sutton, Laurel, Mads, Char and Jordan. "So Thayer was a bust?"Sutton asked.

"Says he had nothing to do with it,"Laurel confirmed.

Ethan shook his head. "I can't believe you didn't tell me."

"I knew you'd try and stop us,"Emma said awkwardly. "And it came off, he told us what he knows, which isn't much. At least we can rule him out."

"If we believe him,"Ethan retorted, in a tone that suggested he wasn't convinced.

"I think I do,"Emma answered. "I'm not saying there isn't some connection but I don't think he's involved."

"So, are we back to square one?"Jordan asked.

"Why now?"Emma pondered. "Why is this happening now? Why not any time in the last year?" She let the question hang in the air. "I think it's someone new in town."

Everyone looks at Mads. "Oh come on!"she protested. "You can't be serious?"

"It does make sense,"Sutton pointed out.

"Why does everyone end up pointing the finger at my family?"

Char blinked, as though finally catching up with the conversation. "Oh, Graham and Caroline!"

"I'm not saying it is them,"Emma told Mads placatingly. "But I think we should keep an eye on them."

"If this is about Thayer, then they're the obvious suspects,"Ethan agreed. "Graham even came to the club and asked me about getting him out."

"What?"Sutton asked incredulously. "Why would they want to do that?"

"They're his parents,"Laurel told her slowly. "They love him. I thought you'd grasped that bit now?"

"Yeah, I'm there, thanks."

"But how does bashing me and Ethan on the head help get Thayer out?"Jordan asked.

"Maybe someone wants you out of the way, so you won't object?"Emma suggested. "Or maybe it's revenge. We're not going to get all the answers now. We just need to keep our eyes and ears open."

* * *

Jacob looked up from the desk at the new arrival. "Yes, can I help you?"

"Graham Caldron."

Jacob accepted the outstretched hand even though he was none the wiser. "Were you looking to join, Mr. Caldron?"

"I was just wondering if there'd been any word on what's been going on around here." Jacob looked at Graham confused. "Those two boys being attacked,"Graham explained.

Jacob nodded. "Well, you'd be better off talking to the police but as far as I'm aware no arrests have been made. Do you know the two boys in question?"

"Barely. It's more a question of them knowing my son. I'm worried that some people might be looking to blame him for this."

"Your son?"

Graham looked awkward for a moment before answering,"Thayer Rybak. You know the name?"

"I've heard it mentioned a few times, yes. I understood he was…well, not in a position to do anything like this at the moment."

"No but I'm sure it won't be long before people start suggesting that he put someone up to it."

Jacob looked at him keenly. "And is there anyone you can think of who'd do this on Thayer's behalf?"

Gordon stared back at him coldly. "No."

* * *

Dan was just tidying the papers on his desk when he saw Caroline come in. "Mrs. Rybak."

"It's been Mrs. Caldron for the last six years, Daniel."

"Yes, of course, I'm sorry. Guess you should call me Dan. Or Officer Whitehorse."

Caroline gave him a smile that didn't come across as completely sincere. "I guess it's hard given I've known you since you were a boy."

"So, what can I do for you?"

"I want to see about my son being released."

Dan felt a sudden lurch in his stomach, as if he'd been hit. "You'd be better off speaking to a solicitor."

"Oh, trust me, I have solicitors working on it. I just want to know what your reaction would be."

"Thayer would have to undergo full psychological assessment to assess the success or otherwise of the treatment he's been receiving and determine whether he is still a danger to society. I have been keeping a close eye on his progress and from what I can see, he is still a long way off reaching that stage. If he ever does reach that stage, then the police department will make every effort to ensure his rehabilitation is successful." He looked her straight in the eye. "Personally, I hope he stays locked up for a long time to come."

Caroline's jaw quivered slightly at the pronouncement. "Thank you for your honesty, Officer Whitehorse."

"I doubt you'd want it any other way."

"Quite. And let me just say that if you stand in the way of my son's release, I will make every effort to make sure you no longer in a position to influence anything."


	14. Episode 5 Chapter 2

**One thing I forgot to mention in my ramblings at the start of the last chapter: Unfortunately, I have no connection with ABC Family, Warner Brothers or Pratt Enterprises and it's very unlikely they'll offer me a big bag of gold to make my stories. I'm just a guy sitting in front of a computer, in a flat, making stuff up. Sorry.**

**Thank you to everyone who's followed or favourited this!**

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO**

Mads stopped outside the door to the house and took a deep breath. There had been some debate about whether she should take Sutton or Char home with her but in the end the general consensus was that it was better handled one on one. She steeled herself and pushed the door open. "Anyone home?"

Caroline appeared from the direction of the kitchen. "Oh, hi, Mads, I wasn't sure what time you'd be home."

"What are you doing here?" Mads inwardly kicked herself. She'd intended to lead up to it.

Caroline looked at her uncertainly. "What do you mean?"

"I mean…why have you come back here? Are you trying to get Thayer out of the asylum?"

There was a worryingly hard look in Caroline's eyes. "Have you been talking to Dan Whitehorse?"

"Ethan."

Caroline nodded. "Is there anything wrong with that? Or do you think the same as your friends, that Thayer should stay locked up for good?"

Mads hesitated. It was a difficult question. "Mum, Thayer was dangerous. I want him to get better but…I don't want him let out until he is."

"I see. Well, at least I know where your loyalties lie now."

The conversation wasn't going the way Mads wanted but she tried again anyway. "Mum, what are you trying to do?"

"I'm trying to get my family back together,"Caroline answered. "Whatever it takes."

* * *

Sutton sat in the passenger seat, keeping a close eye on Emma, who was drumming her fingers on the steering wheel. "Well, this is just like old times."

Emma looked sideways at her. "What do you mean?"

"You and me, spying, investigating. Trying to get to the bottom of the mystery."

Emma sighed. "Everything we went through with Dad and Rebecca and Alec and Thayer…how'd we end up in the middle of another lying game?"

Sutton shrugged. "Just attract them, I guess."

"Or maybe we're going to spend the rest of our lives having to clear up the mess they made."

"Wow, you're a real bundle of laughs at the moment."

"Having my fiance end up in hospital has that effect on me." Emma suddenly looked straight ahead. "There he is."

"Ethan?"

"Graham."

Sutton looked ahead and saw Graham coming out of the club. "So what are we saying here? Villain returns to the scene of the crime?"

"Maybe if we follow him we'll find out."

"He's not going to lead us to some sort of secret villain's lair."

"No but we'll see where he goes, who he talks to." Emma put the car in drive and eased forward in the direction Graham's car was going.

Sutton sighed and settled back. "Just make sure you keep well back."

They followed Graham's car through the streets at a distance…until he parked outside the Rybak residence and headed inside. "Well, that was an anti-climax,"Sutton noted. "I can go in and keep an eye on him?"

Emma shook her head. "No, you were right, this is a waste of time. We'll just have to see what the others turn up."

* * *

Char sat at a table in the coffee shop, nervously looking at her watch. She hadn't told any of the others where she was going. Things had too much of a tendency to go wrong for her for her to do that. She looked round, wondering whether she should leave, but then she saw Justin coming in. She smiled and waved to him.

"Sorry I'm a bit late,"Justin apologised as he took a seat at the table, stopping only to order his coffee.

"Were you late?"Char asked airily. "I didn't notice."

"So, what have you been up to today?"

"Went to the hospital." She saw Justin look puzzled. "To see Ethan?"

Justin nodded. "Oh, right, yeah, I heard something about that. How is he?"

"He'll be discharged later today."

"How's things going with your dad?"

"Good, good, yeah. Haven't seen much of him, hopefully he'll be moving back to the house soon."

"Must be a bit weird what with Mads' parents back as well."

"Yeah, it's all a bit freaky. My dad comes back, Mads' mum comes back, Ethan and Jordan end up in hospital…" She had a sudden gnawing feeling in her gut but chose to push it down. "All one big coincidence."

* * *

Ethan tried to extricate himself from Laurel and Jordan's grip as they helped him into the flat. "Guys… guys, I can walk."

"You've been flat on your back for two days,"Laurel reminded him. "You're out of practise."

"I was a bit unsteady on my feet when I got out of hospital,"Jordan agreed.

Laurel looked askance at him. "Yeah, technically shouldn't you be having trouble walking too?" She looked back at Ethan. "The doctor said you needed bed rest."

"Couldn't we compromise with sitting down?"Ethan suggested.

Laurel and Jordan helped him onto the couch, then Jordan collapsed next to him. Laurel looked from one to the other. "Right, well, as the only able-bodied person here, I'll go and put the kettle on."

Ethan watched Jordan, whose gaze was fixed on Laurel as she left the room, a broad smile on his face. Ethan was forced to make the same conclusion as Emma. It pleased him. "She's great, isn't she?"Jordan asked.

"Well, don't want to get inappropriate,"Ethan replied,"but yeah, she's a great girl."

"So, got any idea what all this is about?"

Ethan sighed. "I wish I knew."


	15. Episode 5 Chapter 3

**Picked up another follower so thank you to that person.**

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE**

Emma and Sutton walked up the driveway of the Mercer house. "I really don't get what we're doing back here,"Sutton protested.

"We need information,"Emma answered. "On Graham and Caroline."

"Couldn't we get that from Mads?"

"No, she was too young. We need someone who can remember everything that happened with them and Thayer and Alec. And out of all the adults in this town, is there anyone you trust more than Mum?"

"Does Dan count?"

Emma was suddenly awkward. "I didn't mean…"

"I know. He's an adult and you and me are still having a hard time seeing ourselves like that. No wonder it didn't work out. You're right. Mum's the best person to speak to."

They pushed open the door but were pulled up short by the sight from the kitchen. Peter and Kristin with their arms around each other, softly kissing.

Emma and Sutton both quickly turned their backs on the pair. "I didn't see that,"Sutton insisted.

"Neither did I,"Emma agreed. They chanced a look back over their shoulders to see Kristin and Peter looking back at them awkwardly.

"I didn't know you were coming round,"Kristin noted.

Sutton raised an eyebrow. "I got that impression."

"I'd better go,"Peter decided.

"So had I,"Sutton agreed. Emma gave her a look of desperation. "Good luck,"Sutton responded before following Peter out of the house.

Emma turned back to Kristin awkwardly. "So. You and Char's dad."

"His name's Peter,"Kristin explained.

"I know that, I just don't know him as well as you do."

"Emma, you're not going to be difficult about this, are you? You know there hasn't really been anyone since your dad. There was Alec but that never really got going…"

"I do want you to be happy. I'm just surprised."

Kristin nodded. "Peter and I have been spending time together since he got back and we just kind of clicked. I don't know if it's going to go anywhere but I want to find out." She shook her head as though clearing her thoughts. "I'm sorry, I haven't asked what you're doing here."

Emma shifted awkwardly. Quizzing her about Rybak family history suddenly didn't seem appropriate. "Just wanted to see how you were."

* * *

The usual suspects had gathered with Emma and Ethan in their flat: Sutton, Laurel, Jordan, Mads and Char. "My dad and your mum?"Char asked. "Hang on, you're my cousins, isn't that like incest?"

"Different branch of the family tree,"Emma pointed out. "Kristin's our adoptive mum, you're related to us through Rebecca."

Char pondered this. "Still a bit weird."

"Weird or not,"Laurel argued,"shouldn't we be happy that Mum's happy?"

"Maybe,"Ethan agreed. "If it's as simple as that."

Laurel was confused. "What do you mean?"

"He means Dad came back around the time stuffed started happening,"Char said quietly.

Ethan gave her an awkward look. "Yeah."

"Woah, back up,"Jordan interjected. "We're looking at Peter now?"

"So Mum's off the hook?"Mads asked.

"Let's just say our list of suspects just got longer,"Sutton suggested.

Emma took a deep breath. "Char, we're going to need your help."

Char looked apprehensive. "Doing what?"

"Do some snooping for us. Is that okay?"

Char sighed. "I guess it has to be."

* * *

Char sat in her car outside her old house, a pair of oversized sunglasses on her face to try and appear as inconspicuous as possible. Peter had moved back in a few days ago. She watched as he came down the driveway and looked about him, before heading off in the opposite direction to where she was.

Char headed up to the house and began searching through drawers and cupboard. She had no idea what she was looking for. Emma had just told her that if she found something she'd know it. She wasn't entirely convinced that was true.

She was searching through a cupboard when she found an old biscuit tin. Opening it up, she found a pile of letters. She picked the first one up.

_Peter. I'm sorry for everything that's happened. I don't regret what happened between us and it will always be special to me. But Phyllis is my sister and I love her and I can't carry on doing this to her. It's over between us and I think it's best I stay away. I think Phyllis knows something happened and you're not going to be able to move on with me hanging around. I love you. Annie._

Char looked at the words written in front of her in astonishment. "Annie? As in Annie Rebecca Sewell?" She gaped at the implication in astonishment. "Dad and Aunt Rebecca?"

* * *

**End of Episode Five**


	16. Episode 6 Chapter 1

**Well, I picked up quite a few reviews and a few follows and favourites so thank you for those.**

* * *

**EPISODE SIX:** Family Ties

**CHAPTER ONE**

Emma stared hard at the letter. Char had called all the others to the flat in order to show it to them. "Your dad and Rebecca?"

"Hey, this doesn't mean that Peter's your dad or anything, does it?"Laurel asked.

Emma shook her head. "No, the dates are wrong. This must have been before Dad."

"Wow, she really got around, didn't she?"Sutton sighed.

"I'll say,"Mads agreed. "This means she slept with the dad of everyone in this room." She paused a moment, doing a quick check. "Except Ethan. As far as we know."

"That's a mental image I could have done without,"Ethan decided.

"Mum never liked talking about Aunt Rebecca,"Char recalled. "I figured it was because she knew about her and Ted but…maybe it was her and Dad."

"So where does this leave us?"Jordan asked. "I mean, this isn't exactly proof."

"Yeah, why would having an affair with the elastic underwear lady make Peter want to start whacking people on the head?"Laurel agreed.

"Revenge?"Emma suggested.

"You mean, what, on anyone who helped bring down Rebecca?"Sutton asked.

Emma nodded. "Maybe it was more than an affair. Maybe…I dunno, maybe he loved her."

"She did always say her and Dad was more than physical,"Sutton agreed. "At least on her part. Maybe this was the other way round."

"So we can't rule him out,"Mads concluded.

"Or in,"Char added.

"We need to look into this further,"Emma decided.

"But not now,"Ethan interjected. "Unless you've forgotten about those arrangements you've been reminding me about."

Laurel clapped her hands together excitedly. "Wedding dresses!"

"Oh. Yeah." Emma kicked herself for forgetting. "Everyone still up for that?" Sutton and Mads nodded. "Let's go then."

* * *

Char walked with Ethan as he headed to his shift at the club, mainly because she didn't have anyone else to walk with. "Aren't you going to go looking for dresses?"she asked him. "Or, you know, suits or tuxes?"

"Yeah, I've got to give some guy the measurements for me, Dan and Jordan some time,"Ethan confirmed. He looked at her, suddenly uncomfortable. "You don't mind being left out of all this, do you? I mean, you are Emma's cousin."

Char shrugged. "Well, I was in Florida most of the time when you were all bonding. I guess this should be for the people that were there when you first got together." She thought for a moment. "Hang on, I was there when you first got together, wasn't I?"

"Yeah. You just didn't know who Emma was."

"Right. I'm happy just being a guest, get to check out all the cute guys."

"Justin."

Char looked perplexed. "I didn't mention Justin."

"Hey, Ethan,"Justin returned the greeting from behind her, causing her to spin round and try to adopt a less stunned expression. "Hi, Char."

Char made a few incoherent noises. "Hey,"she managed at last.

"You on shift today?"Ethan asked.

Justin nodded. "Been doing extra what with Jordan and then you not around."

"Better go inside then."

"Yeah. See you later, Char."

Again, Char didn't know what to say at first. "Bye,"she managed at last.

* * *

Emma emerged from the changing room wearing her wedding dress and did a slight turn around, giving her friends a good look at it. "What do you think?"

"It would look better on me,"Sutton decided.

Laurel shot her a bemused look. "You look the same."

"No, I've got more poise."

"You're welcome to have it when I've finished with it,"Emma offered. "I'm only planning on getting married once."

"That's what everyone says,"Mads sighed. She saw everyone look at her and gave an apologetic shrug. "Sorry. Not the time to be cynical. And if anyone's going to stay together, it's you and Ethan."

Sutton sighed. "Yeah, that's true."

Emma took her twin by the shoulders. "Hey, look, I meant what I said. Maybe not about the second hand dress but…I'm sure you'll get married too one day." She glanced round so her gaze encompassed the others. "So what do you think of your dresses?"

Emma had chosen a pale blue for the bridesmaid dresses which all three of them were currently trying on. "It's great,"Laurel confirmed enthusiastically.

"You're certainly going to have some cute bridesmaids,"Maddy confirmed.

"Not that we're going to outshine you,"Laurel added hastily.

"At least not in Ethan's eyes,"Sutton agreed. "And that's what matters, right?"

Emma let out a long breath. "I still can't quite get that this is actually happening but yeah. The fact that I'm marrying Ethan, finally, is what's really important in all this." She drew her friends into a group hug. "And I'm so glad to have you all there with me."


	17. Episode 6 Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

Emma had dropped Laurel, Sutton and Mads off near their respective homes but she wanted to get some things sorted before going back to her own place. She pulled into the drive at the Mercer house and headed to the front door, taking care to knock this time.

Kristin appeared a few moments later. "Emma! I wasn't expecting you." She looked puzzled suddenly. "You don't usually knock."

"I wasn't sure if you had company,"Emma replied as delicately as possible.

Kristin redenned slightly before opening the door wider for her adopted daughter. "Come in."

Emma stepped into the house, aware that what she was going to say could cause even further ructions. "Just how well do you know Peter?"

Kristin looked at her in surprise. "He's Char's father."

"I know that. And I know he stepped up to the plate when her mum got sent away but from what I hear he wasn't exactly reliable beforehand."

"That's true." Kristin sighed. "I've known Peter since we were at school but I can't say I was ever that close to him. He was dating Phyllis of course, so I mostly knew him through her."

"What about Rebecca? How well did he know her?"

Kristin didn't seem entirely comfortable at the line of questioning. "Well, I didn't see them together at school but she was his sister-in-law, I imagine they knew each other."

Emma took a deep breath. "Char found some old letters. They were having an affair. Before Dad."

Kristin looked away. "I see."

"I'm sorry,"Emma told her. "I just…I've kept things from you in the past and I didn't want to do the same here."

Kristin still didn't look at her. "I need to be alone now, if you don't mind."

Sadly, Emma left the house.

* * *

Ethan glanced over at Justin. Both of them were wiping tables at the club. Although he saw Justin around quite a bit at work, and before that at school, he'd never really spoken to him that much. But somehow their earlier conversation had inspired him. "Are you going to the wedding?"he asked.

Justin seemed thrown by the question. "Your wedding? I haven't been invited."

"Well, what if you were? In fact, what if I asked you to be one of my groomsmen?"

Justin was even more gobsmacked. "Do we really know each other that well?"

"As well as I know anyone. Mads needs an escort and…I think Char would like it if you were there."

Justin seemed to accept the line Ethan was taking. "She's a great girl."

"Yeah and she's been messed around a lot. I like to think you wouldn't do that."

"I'm not planning to."

"Then…will you?"

Justin thought for a moment and then nodded. "Yeah, sure. I'll stand up there with you."

* * *

Sutton and Mads had got Emma to drop them a few streets from the house so they could go shopping. They were arriving back at the house when they heard Caroline on the phone. "Yes, that's right. Flying out tomorrow. You've got my credit card number? Okay, thank you."

"Mum?"Mads asked, bewildered. "What's going on?"

Caroline spun round at the voice, thrown by the interruption. "Madeleine! I didn't know you were home."

Mads continued to look at her in shock. "Are you leaving?"

Sutton suddenly felt like an intruder. "I'll just be in my room,"she decided, giving Mads a reassuring squeeze on the arm as she made her exit.

Caroline gestured for her daughter to head towards the settee. "Mads, sit down." Mads did as instructed and Caroline sat next to her. "I know I haven't been here for you like I should have been, for you and Thayer. I let Alec handle things and I'm sure he did the best job he could but I should have been keeping an eye on things. That's what I'm trying to do now."

"By leaving?"Mads asked incredulously. "Mum, I really wanted to believe you were here for me but now…"

"Graham and I came here for Thayer,"Caroline explained. "I know he hurt the people in this town. I was hoping we could convince them to forgive and forget, that that would make securing his release easier. But it seems that's not going to be the case. If we are going to get him released, then he can't come back here. We're going to head back to Iowa, try and build a home for him there, and carry on working to get him back with us."

"And what about me?"Mads asked bitterly. "Am I going to get passed over for the firstborn again?"

"That's up to you." Caroline looked at her seriously. "I want you to come with us."


	18. Episode 6 Chapter 3

**Ah yes, I meant to mention earlier. Despite my attempts to avoid any cultural faux pas, one reviewer pointed out that you can't drink at eighteen in the US. Whoops. Let's just assume they lied about their age...**

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE**

Mads had grabbed Sutton and gone round to Emma's flat after Caroline's announcement, calling Char to meet them there. The four friends sat around, three of them looking expectantly at Mads. "Mum told me why she's here."

There was a moment's silence. "Does she want to get her own back for what happened to Thayer?"Char asked.

Mads shook her head. "No. She wanted to convince people to speak up for Thayer, to get him released."

"Are we sure that's all she was doing?"Sutton asked suspiciously.

"Well, she and Graham are heading back to Iowa,"Mads answered. "They want to set up a home for Thayer there. Would she do that if they were behind this?"

"No, they wouldn't,"Emma admitted.

Mads hesitated. "She's asked me to go with them."

"Are you going to?"Sutton asked.

Mads shrugged. "I haven't told her yet."

Sutton sensed her friend didn't want to discuss it further, even though she was dying to know. "So where does this leave us?"

"I guess with our remaining suspects,"Emma noted.

Char noticed the fact no-one was looking at her. "You mean Dad, don't you? You think he's behind this?"

"He's our only option at the moment,"Emma admitted.

"No." Char shook her head firmly. "Dad isn't behind this, he can't be. Why would he be?"

"Because of Rebecca,"Sutton answered. "I mean, Emma and I rejected her, that's what tipped her over the edge. If it wasn't just an affair and he was in love with her..."

"You're just making this up,"Char protested. "I don't believe it."

Emma took her by the shoulders. "Char, none of us want this to be true. For your sake and for Mum's, I hope it isn't. But I had to face up to the fact that my dad might have killed Derek and Theresa, even though I didn't want to. We can't ignore this. Not unless someone else knows something that might help."

* * *

At that moment, Justin was on his phone in his room. "Look, you don't have to do this,"he was saying. "Char's a good girl and…and these are her friends. You're hurting them…Yes, I know all that but that wasn't their fault…Please, just listen to me. Hello?" He lowered the phone, cursing the futility of his pleas.

* * *

Sutton and Mads arrived back at the house to find Caroline and Graham standing with their bags packed. "Ah, Madeleine, you're here,"Caroline greeted her. "There's a taxi coming in half an hour, can you get yourself ready for then?"

Sutton noticed Mads looking uncomfortable. "I'll wait in my room…"

"I want you to stay,"Mads told her.

Sutton looked at her in surprise. "Really?"

Mads turned back to Caroline. "I'm not coming."

Caroline paused before turning to Graham. "Can you give us a moment?"

He nodded. "I'll go and check on the taxi." He gave her a quick kiss on the top of the head.

Caroline waited until he'd gone before turning back to her daughter. "Mads, I know it might seem like I haven't spent much time with you…"

"You've never spent time with me, Mum. You left me and Thayer with Dad. You asked him to come with you but you never asked me."

"Alec was your father, it was right you stayed with him…"

"You can justify it however you want, Mum. But I've got a family here and it's not you. It's Sutton and Emma and Char and Ethan and everyone who's been there for me when you weren't. You want to help Thayer and that's great, I hope you manage it. But this new family you're trying to create? I'm not part of it."

* * *

Sutton and Mads watched from the upper window as Graham and Caroline gave their bags to the taxi driver. Caroline glanced up in their direction. Mads gave her a sad wave. Caroline smiled awkjwardly, her eyes full of regret, then got into the car.

"So that's that then,"Sutton remarked. "Things can get back to normal."

"Mmm,"Mads agreed non-committally.

"Once we work out who's attacking us all, that is."

* * *

**End of Episode Six**


	19. Episode 7 Chapter 1

**Well, I just got another blitz of reviews so thank you to that person and thank you to everyone that's following this.**

* * *

**EPISODE SEVEN:** A Shot in the Dark

**CHAPTER ONE**

Emma and Ethan's flat seemed to have become the unofficial meeting place for the group. It had been some time since they had been holding meetings like this, not since the days when Emma and Sutton were taking it in turns to hide out in the cabin. But now here they were again, Emma and Ethan, Sutton, Mads, Char, Laurel and Jordan, meeting up in a campaign of war.

Emma touched Mads' hand gently. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay, I guess,"Mads answered. "I don't think deep down I was ever expecting Mum to stick around. Just a bit of a shock when she left."

"So what now?"Laurel asked.

Ethan spread his arms helplessly. "Guess we try and figure out what's going on. Who's really behind this."

"You still think it's Dad?"Char asked.

"I don't want to, Char,"Emma promised her. "None of us do. But we have to admit it might be him."

Char nodded slowly. "What do you want me to do?"

"Well, searching his place again probably isn't going to do much good,"Jordan commented.

Emma nodded in agreement. "We need to be more careful."

"Can you just keep an eye on him?"Sutton asked her cousin.

Char nodded. "I can manage that. But I don't really feel up to interrogating him or firing questions at him."

Sutton gave a slight smile. "I think we can rely on Mum to do that."

* * *

Kristin answered the door when Peter knocked and led him into the house. He stood looking at her in uncertainty. "I got your call and…here I am. What's wrong?"

Kristin turned to him. "Tell me about Rebecca."

Peter looked confused. "Rebecca?"

"Your sister-in-law. The one you had an affair with."

Peter seemed frozen to the spot for a moment. "How do you know about that?"

Kristin shook her head. "That doesn't matter. What matters is whether or not it's true. Is it true?"

Peter was silent for a moment. Then he nodded. "Yes, it is." Kristin turned away from him, feelings of hurt coursing through her. "Do you want me to try and explain?" She shrugged, which he took as a sign for him to go ahead. "Phyllis and I got married for all the wrong reasons. She was after the status, I was after a wife to take to corporate functions. We both realised early on that the other couldn't give us what we wanted. But we were too scared to admit it. It wouldn't do her image or my career much good to have a failed marriage. And then there was Rebecca…Annie, as she called herself then. Her younger sister. She was flirtatious, she was pretty, she made it clear she wanted me. And I was flattered. So I let it happen."

"How long did it go on for?"Kristin asked.

"Four months."

"And who ended it?"

"She did."

"Does Phyllis know?"

"She's never spoken to me about it, nor Rebecca either as far as I know. But yeah, I think she knows. Things were never the same between the three of us after that. We threw ourselves into trying to make our marriage work. And that brought us Char, which I'm never going to regret. But we were kidding ourselves."

"Rebecca brought a lot of misery to my family,"Kristin told him. "Emma and Sutton wouldn't exist without her but she took their father away from them. And I never forgave him for betraying me with her. Just like you betrayed Phyllis."

Peter stepped forward and put his hands on her shoulders. "Kristin, no woman has ever made me feel like you do. Not Phyllis and not Rebecca."

She stepped back, pulling free of his grip. "I need to work out if I can deal with this."

Peter left without another word.

* * *

Night had fallen. Dan pulled his police car up outside a house. All seemed quiet. He grabbed the car radio. "Car Three to Control. Please confirm address for 911 call."

"491 Rosetta Street,"came the response.

"That's where I am now but there's nothing here. No lights on, no sounds, no movement. It looks empty."

"Caller spoke of domestic disturbance, sounds of an argument and of violence."

"Okay, I'll check it out."

Dan got out of his car and flicked on a torch. And in the sudden illumination, he caught sight of movement. A figure standing by the door of the building. "Hello? Who's there?"he called.

Then a gunshot rang out. The bullet slammed into Dan and he fell to the ground.


	20. Episode 7 Chapter 2

**Thank you for the review, favourite and follow!**

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO**

Emma and Ethan dashed into the hospital and stopped at the reception desk. "We're here to see Dan Whitehorse,"Emma explained. "The police called us."

"I'm his brother,"Ethan added.

The receptionist checked her screen. "Room 3."

The pair hurried in the direction indicated and entered the room. There they found Sutton sat by Dan's bedside, holding his hand.

She looked round as the pair came in. Her face was stained with tears. "The bullet hit him in the shoulder. They've removed it and patched up the wound. They think he's going to be okay." She suddenly seemed to realise that they were wondering about her presence. "Turns out he's still got me down as a contact. Crazy, huh?"

Emma went over to her sister and put her arms around her. "I think maybe he realises that you'd still want to know if something happened to him."

"Or it's just the one part of his life he's forgotten to obliterate me from." She wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry, this isn't about me, you must be so worried."

Ethan went round the other side of the bed, smiling down at his unconscious brother. "See, Dan? You can still make the girls cry." He looked up at Sutton. "Have the police said anything?"

"Just that he was answering a call-out."

"Yeah, that's what they told us."

"I hate to bring this up,"Emma said awkwardly. "But do we think this is connected with everything that's been happening?"

Ethan shrugged. "Bit of a coincidence if it isn't. Sutton, do you mind sitting with him for a while?"

"Of course not,"Sutton answered. "But why?"

"Because I want some answers. And I'm not leaving that police station until someone gives me some." He headed for the door.

Emma hesitated, looking at Sutton. "Do you want me to stay with you?"

Sutton shook her head. "Dan and I will be all right on our own. Ethan needs someone to keep his head level."

Emma patted her on the shoulders then ran after her fiance.

* * *

Laurel, Mads, Char and Jordan were waiting for them outside the police station. "How's Dan?"Laurel asked.

Emma waited for Ethan to answer but he didn't. "We think he's going to be okay,"she told them.

"Have you spoken to the police?"Ethan asked.

"We tried,"Mads answered. "But they won't tell us anything."

"Not family,"Jordan added.

Char looked decidedly uncomfortable. "You don't think my dad…"

Ethan's temper flared. "If he did…"

Emma took hold of his arm gently, calming him. "We don't know,"she told Char. "Hopefully we'll soon find out."

Ethan led the way into the police station. Officer Harry was on duty and Ethan marched towards him. "What's being done about finding the scumbag that hurt my brother?"

"Calm down, Ethan,"Harry told him gently but firmly. "We all want to find who shot Dan, he's one of us. But you've got to give us time."

"Well, what have you done so far?"

Harry hesitated, not sure if he should be discussing the case, then gave in. "We're looking into the 911 call that Dan was answering. We're guessing that whoever made it was deliberately setting Dan up."

"Seems likely,"Jordan agreed.

"Can we hear it?"Ethan asked. "The 911 call."

Harry looked uncertain. "We might recognise the voice,"Emma suggested.

Harry hesitated for a moment longer then went to a computer and clicked on a file. A recording of the call began to play, a young man's voice. "You'd better get down here, I'm in Rosetta Street and there's this huge racket coming from 491, sounds like they're going to murder each other. Man and woman arguing and fighting and throwing things. You need to check it out."

"That wasn't my dad,"Char said in relief.

"No it wasn't,"Laurel agreed. "But it sounded familiar somehow."

"You're right,"Mads confirmed. "But I can't place it."

Another officer came through from the rear and handed Harry a piece of paper. "We've traced the phone call. It was made from a cell phone registered to a Lester Marcus."

Ethan froze at the information and looked at Mads. "Lester Marcus?"

Emma saw recognition on the faces of Ethan, Mads, Char and Laurel but she herself was none the wiser. "You know him?"

"We were at school together,"Mads answered. "He was two years above us." She took a deep breath. "And he was friends with Thayer."


	21. Episode 7 Chapter 3

**CHAPTER THREE**

The vehicle containing the teenagers drew to a halt outside Lester's address only a few moments after the two squad cars. Harry registered their presence. "Wait out here,"he told them before he and the other officers raced into the house.

Ethan waited exactly ten seconds before charging in after them.

Emma turned to the others. "Wait here,"she told them before dashing after him.

Jordan and Laurel looked like they were about to follow but Mads stepped in front of them. "Let them handle it."

Inside, Lester was sat in a chair, surrounded by police officers. "What gives?"he demanded.

"What did you do to my brother?"Ethan snarled, lunging forward as if to attack him. Emma took hold of him, waiting for his anger to subside.

"911 call made from your phone,"Harry told Lester. "You want to deny you made it?"

"All this is about a hoax call?"Lester demanded.

"No, all this is about you shooting the officer who answered it."

"What?" Lester shook his head in astonishment. "I ain't shot no cop. Why would I do that?"

"Because of Thayer,"Ethan snapped.

"Thayer? I haven't spoken to that loon in nearly two years. Anyway, how would I know Dan Whitehorse would be the one to respond?"

"Police scanner,"Harry replied. "If you had one of those, you could find out the locations of all the officers and pick an address that's nearest to Officer Whitehorse."

Lester gestured around the house. "Feel free to search for a police scanner."

"We are doing. That's what the warrant was for."

"Harry." The officer who had brought him the report earlier appeared carrying a bag full of money. "Found this stuffed in his closet."

"How much do we have here?"Harry asked triumphantly, sifting through the bag.

"Four thousand dollars,"Lester admitted. All eyes were on him now. "Okay, I admit it. I got a call from this guy. Not Thayer, someone older. Offered me four thousand to make the phone call. I wasn't going to pass that up, was I?"

"Four thousand?"Harry asked. "To make a phone call?" Lester shrugged. "I think you're lying. I think you're protecting Thayer and I think you had to do a lot more to get this money. I think you got it for shooting Officer Whitehorse."

"No!"Lester insisted. "All I did was make a phone call!"

Harry looked at him sceptically. "Lester Marcus, I'm arresting you on suspicion of attempted murder." He gestured to one of the other officers. "Read him his rights."

* * *

Dan slowly opened his eyes and took in the girl sitting next to him. "Sutton?" He looked around the hospital room. "What happened?"

Sutton leaned over him. "You've been shot,"she said quietly.

Dan tried to sit up and winced. "That would explain the pain. How bad is it?"

"They said you've got a bit of muscle damage. It'll take time to heal. You might need some rehab to get the full use of the shoulder back." She bit her lip nervously. "When I got the call saying you'd been shot, it brought back everything that happened to Dad. I don't think I could bear it if…" She shook her head. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be saying this, I shouldn't even be here…" She made for the door.

"Sutton, wait!"Dan called. Sutton stopped in the doorway and turned to face him. "I've missed you,"he told her. "You were a big part of my life for a long time and I don't want us to be enemies. Can't we at least be friends?"

Sutton nodded slowly. "I'd like that."

At that moment, Emma and Ethan appeared in the doorway next to her. Ethan took in his brother's conscious state. "Good to see you looking a bit more alert."

"Alert enough to keep an eye on you,"Dan answered. "Have you been running around looking for trouble again?"

"To be fair, we did have Harry with us."

"He just arrested Lester Mason,"Emma explained.

"Lester?"Sutton asked. "He was behind all this?"

"Well, not behind it exactly but he was the one doing it all."

"Thayer was paying him,"Ethan added.

Sutton mused the matter over. "Okay, that kind of makes sense. So how do we feel about this?"

Emma let out a deep sigh. "Just relieved,"she answered. "After everything that's happened, all those people we suspected – Caroline, Graham, Peter – it looks like it's finally over."

"And we can look forward to happier things,"Dan concluded. "Like the fact that, unless I'm mistaken, you two are getting married in a couple of days."

Ethan grinned. "Yeah. Nice to be able to focus on that without this hanging over our heads."

* * *

At that moment, in a darkened cellar, a black-gloved hand hovered over a photograph pinned to the wall: The photograph of the four Mercer women, the one Kristin had noticed missing from the house. Already, crosses had been marked above the heads of Emma and Laurel. Now, a third cross was added over the head of Sutton. The pen hovered over Emma for a moment, as though the person holding it was contemplating their next move. Then the person moved away, leaving the photograph as the only evidence of the danger they were all still in.

* * *

**End of Episode Seven**


	22. Episode 8 Chapter 1

**Picked up some more follows and favourites, so thank you to those people!**

* * *

**EPISODE EIGHT:** Runaway Lies

**CHAPTER ONE**

Emma reclined in Ethan's arms on the sofa. "Does it scare you that this time tomorrow we'll be married?"

"Why would I be scared about being married to you?"Ethan returned.

Emma smiled and kissed him lightly. "That was the right answer."

"Are _you_ scared?"

Emma thought for a moment. "Well, not of being married to you. It just feels like we've come so far and been through so much to get to this point, it can't possibly all go all right."

"You worry too much." He was interrupted by a knock at the door and sighed. "I'll go and check on that." He got up and opened the door…and Jordan and Justin grabbed him by the arms and lifted him off his feet, carrying him away from the flat.

Emma looked after them in bewilderment. "Ethan?"

* * *

Ethan was carried down to a car outside where he found Dan waiting for them. He looked at him wryly. "I guess there's no point me reporting a kidnapping."

Dan grinned then nodded to the other two. "Put him in the back."

Ethan surrendered to his friends' manhandling. "I hate to point this out but I just left Emma alone in the flat. Can I at least phone her..?"

"Uh-uh,"Jordan replied. "No phones allowed. This is your last night as a free man, you have to enjoy it."

"Whether I want to or not?"Ethan asked.

"Now you're getting the picture."

"Is she really alone?"Dan asked.

Justin nodded cautiously. "I guess they must have been held up." He noticed a car approaching. "But…"

Dan relaxed. "Okay, let's go."

* * *

Although she had seen his friends take him and wasn't too worried, Emma still wasn't entirely comfortable with Ethan being dragged out of the flat. She slowly approached the door…and jumped back as a group of figures appeared there. "Party!"Char shouted, waving a champagne bottle around.

Emma sighed. "We did say we didn't want this."

"You just wanted a quiet one,"Mads recalled, copying the words Emma had used many times.

"We know,"Laurel agreed. "We ignored you."

Emma rolled her eyes and gave in. "I take it Ethan's going to make it back in one piece?"

"Dan promised to look out for him,"Sutton confirmed.

Emma looked at Kristin, who was standing at the rear of the group. "Are you going to look out for me?"

Kristin smiled. "I don't know. I guess we'll just have to see."


	23. Episode 8 Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

Ethan's journey of discovery had only gone as far as Dan's trailer. Dan reached into the fridge, took out a bottle of beer and handed it to Ethan. Ethan looked surprised. "Not often you encourage me to drink."

"Well, if you're old enough to get married, you're old enough to drink that." Dan reached into the fridge again and took out two sodas for Jordan and Justin.

"Are you serious?"Jordan demanded. "I've been drinking the hard stuff since I was twelve!"

"Yeah but I can't have any because of the painkillers." Dan tapped his injured shoulder. "You two can suck it up with me."

"So, how are you feeling about tomorrow?"Justin asked Ethan.

Ethan gave a light laugh. "Like it's what I've been waiting to do all my life. Which might sound kind of corny…"

"Oh, we already knew that,"Jordan replied. "You and Emma love each other so much it's kind of sickening."

"I hope things go well for you,"Justin added.

"Thanks,"Ethan replied, looking at him curiously. "You know any reason why they shouldn't?"

Justin shook his head quickly. "No. Nothing."

"Come on, drink up,"Dan urged his brother. "There's plenty more of that for you to get through tonight."

"Your plans for this evening don't involve chaining me to a cactus or something?"Ethan checked.

"Why would I do that?"Dan asked innocently. "Except for the fact that my little brother is somehow managing to get married before me. Don't worry. I'm not bitter."

* * *

Emma had, for reasons she actually wasn't sure of, consented to having a mock bridal veil draped over her head. Sutton, Mads, Laurel and Char had all drunk copious amounts of the champagne bottle, with only Kristin remaining completely sober. They were all lolled around the flat. "I can't believe my big sister's getting married,"Laurel slurred.

"I can't believe my…" Sutton paused and looked at Emma. "Which is the oldest out of us two?"

Emma thought for a moment then shrugged. "I don't think it ever came up."

"Don't suppose there's anyone left you could ask,"Kristin said quietly. There was a moment's silent reflection.

"How did you find someone as cute as Ethan?"Char asked at last.

"You're lucky,"Mads moaned. "I never get to be that lucky."

"We certainly have to kiss a lot of frogs while we're looking for our prince,"Laurel agreed.

"We didn't exactly have plain sailing,"Emma pointed out. "There were all sorts of reasons why we couldn't get together when we first met."

"Like the fact he was technically dating me,"Sutton suggested.

"That's right."

"But we all thought you were Sutton then anyway,"Laurel interjected.

"Ethan didn't,"Mads reminded them.

Emma smiled. "Ethan was the one person who knew I wasn't Sutton. No offence to the rest of you. But he looked at me and he knew I was…different."

"Wasn't that because Sutton didn't bother to tell you that she knew him?"Char asked.

"That may have had something to do with it. But I like to think it's because we were meant to be."

Kristin smiled at her. "You keep thinking that, honey. It's a good thought to have."

Emma smiled back. "Thanks, Mum!"

* * *

Peter was almost on his way up to bed when he heard the knock on the door. He went to answer it. "Kristin! What are you..?"

Kristin stepped forward and kissed him full on the lips, firmly and intensely, the kiss lingering until it finally broke. "Can I come in?"she asked.

"After that? Yeah, sure." Peter stepped aside and allowed her into the house. "What's with the change of heart?"

"My daughter's getting married tomorrow. I look at her and Ethan and I've never seen two people more in love. They've both got things in their past that they'd rather forget…and they have done. They've moved on from it all and found happiness. And I think…if they can do that, why can't I?"

"Is that what you want?"Peter asked. "Because…if you're talking about me and Rebecca, it is something that I've regretted for a long time."

"I know." Kristin hesitated, aware of how vulnerable she was about to make herself. "Peter, I think I'm falling in love with you. And part of me's scared of that, wants to stop myself. And another part thinks I could be running away from something special."

Peter leaned forward and kissed her. The kiss deepened and then she reluctantly pulled back. "I need to get home, Sutton and Laurel are staying over. We're going round Emma's in the morning." She thought for a moment. "Do you want to come?"

"To Emma's?"

"To the wedding. As…as my date, I guess."

"What time is it?"

"Eleven o'clock."

Peter thought for a moment. "I've got some things to do first thing but it'd be an honour. I'll see you there."


	24. Episode 8 Chapter 3

**Picked up another follow/favourite, so as ever thank you and welcome aboard!**

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE**

Emma looked at her reflection in the mirror. She was alone in the flat. Kristin and her bridesmaids were coming over later but she'd wanted a few moments on her own. She'd put on the wedding dress and stood admiring it. She was there. After everything that had happened, all those years lost in the system without a family, she was getting married with her friends and family around her. By the end of that day, she'd be Mrs. Ethan Whitehorse.

She heard the flat door and realised someone had arrived. "In here!"she called. She turned round…and then stopped as she saw just who had entered the room. She stared in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

* * *

Standing at the front of the church with Dan and Jordan, Ethan checked his watch nervously. "She's not late yet,"Jordan pointed out.

"No but Justin is,"Ethan replied. "At this rate, Emma will get here before him."

"Look, if worst comes to worst, you can get married without Justin here,"Dan told him placatingly.

"I know,"Ethan answered. "But I just want everything to be perfect. Emma deserves it." He left his place and went over to Char, who was sitting a few rows back. "Char, have you seen Justin this morning?"

Char shook her head. "I haven't spoken to him since yesterday. Have you seen my dad?"

Ethan was slightly puzzled at the comment. "No."

"Kristin invited him as her plus one. I told him we could go together but he said he'd meet me here."

Ethan sighed. "No groomsman, no guest, next thing we'll end up with no bride."

"Well, here's one out of three,"Jordan observed.

Justin came hurrying down the aisle, adjusting his tux, and took his place with the rest of Ethan's party. "Sorry."

"Where the hell have you been?"Ethan demanded.

"I got held up at the club."

"Well, you're here now,"Dan said, more for Ethan's benefit than Justin's.

Justin looked around nervously. "Emma's not here?"

"She's not due for another half an hour,"Dan said hastily.

Jordan checked his watch. "Laurel and the others should be arriving at the flat to collect her right about now."

* * *

Kristin knocked on the door of the flat one last time before pushing it open and leading Sutton, Laurel and Mads inside. "Emma, are you here?"she called.

"Well, I'd hope she is with the door unlocked like that,"Sutton commented.

"Unless she's done a runner,"Laurel joked.

"Don't give me frights like that,"Kristin warned her.

"I'll go and check the bedroom,"Mads decided. "She might have fallen asleep."

The three girls had all donned their bridesmaid dresses at the Mercer house before coming over. Kristin looked at Sutton and Laurel with a serene smile on her face. "Mum, will you stop looking at us like that?" Sutton asked.

"Sorry,"Kristin responded. "But I've got to get a picture of the three of you together."

"If Emma ever joins us,"Laurel responded. She looked round to see Mads coming back from the direction of the bedroom, a shocked expression on her face. "Where is she?"

"She hasn't actually run away, has she?"Sutton asked.

"I don't think so,"Mads said slowly, her voice unsteady.

Suddenly concerned, Kristin stepped forward. "What's happened?"

Mads took a deep breath. "I think you'd better see for yourself."

They all filed through into the bedroom and stopped at the sight before them. The dressing table had been overturned, the mirror smashed and the contents scattered across the floor. The sheets had been ripped from the bed and left where they'd fallen. All the signs were that the bedroom had been the scene of a violent struggle…

* * *

**End of Episode Eight**


	25. Episode 9 Chapter 1

**Thank you to everyone who's favourite, followed or reviewed. For anyone who's wondering, the story should be concluding next weekend. Although given some of the places I get hits from, I don't think there's anywhere in the world you won't be able to access it from.**

* * *

**EPISODE NINE:** Missing Twin

**CHAPTER ONE**

Dan stood in the doorway of the bedroom, which was now blocked off with tape marking it as a crime scene. Forensics officers were swarming over it, bagging up every piece of evidence they could find. "Don't miss anything,"he told them. "I want this one sorted as soon as possible." He received various nods from the investigators. They knew just how much the case meant to him.

Dan turned and walked back to the living area. Ethan was sat on the couch, his head in his hands. Neither of them had changed out of their wedding suits. Dan went over to his brother and patted him on the shoulder. "It'll be all right."

"Will it?"Ethan asked. "This is exactly what happened to Therese and you know it."

Dan knew there was no point denying the accusation. It had been playing on his mind the same way it had been playing on Ethan's. "Just because things ended badly with Therese doesn't mean that's gonna happen here."

Ethan seemed to be shaking slightly. "But what if it does? What if…what if all this is for nothing? What if Emma's dead?"

Dan put an arm round his brother's shoulder, comforting him, and Ethan leaned against him, burying his face in Dan's chest. "We're gonna find her,"Dan said quietly. "We have to believe that, okay?"

* * *

Kristin sat on the couch at home. The girls hadn't wanted to come back with her, just as they hadn't wanted to accompany her to the chapel to tell Ethan and Dan what had happened. The looks of horror on their faces had stuck with her. It was something she was trying desperately not to feel herself.

Peter had arrived at the chapel shortly before her and insisted on accompanying her home. He sat down next to her now and put his arms around her. "It'll be all right,"he said quietly.

Kristin shook her head. "I don't know if I can lose her."

"She means a lot to you, doesn't she?"

Kristin nodded. "I was meant to be walking her down the aisle today. My daughter. I know I didn't give birth to her. I didn't even raise her, not really. She was already a wonderful young woman when she came to live with us. I couldn't help falling in love with her, even when I found out she wasn't Sutton. If something bad's happened to her, something really bad…I'm not sure I'd be able to cope, I'm not sure any of us will."

Peter drew her closer and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "It's okay,"he whispered. "I'm here for you."

* * *

When Dan arrived at the police station, he quickly heard the familiar voice coming from one of the corridors. He rounded the corner to see Sutton there. She had changed out of her bridesmaid dress into her normal clothes and seemed to be trying to accost every staffmember who passed her, most of whom were giving her a wide berth. "Hello!"she was calling in frustration. "My sister is missing! Will someone talk to me?"

"Sutton?"Dan asked gently.

Sutton turned to him, relieved. "Dan. What's going on?"

"We're going over the flat for clues, we've got squad cars out searching, we're doing door to door…"

"Is this to do with what happened before? With Thayer and Lester?"

Dan sighed. "It's beginning to look like Lester was telling the truth. Thayer wasn't involved and all Lester did was make a phone call."

"Then the person who did this is still out there? The same person that shot you, that attacked Ethan and Jordan, they're the ones that have got Emma?" Sutton sagged, looking despairing. "How could we be so stupid?"she moaned before collapsing in tears.

Dan wrapped his arms around her and she collapsed against him. "It'll be okay,"he said quietly.

"She's my sister,"Sutton sobbed. "It took me so long to find her, I can't lose her."

Dan tilted her face and kissed her gently on the lips. Sutton responded instantly. They embraced, softly but intensely, instinct taking over, their hands roaming aimlessly about each other's bodies until finally Sutton pulled back. "We can't,"she said. "Our heads are all over the place at the moment."

"Yeah,"Dan agreed. He was going to leave it at that but then he looked at her and remembered how empty his life had been since they'd broken up. "Except…I've wanted to do that for weeks."

Sutton smiled slightly. "Me too,"she admitted. She took a deep breath. "We'll get Emma back and then… then we'll need to talk."

* * *

In a darkened cellar, Emma, still wearing her wedding dress, was tied to a chair, her head lolling forwards, completely unconscious.


	26. Episode 9 Chapter 2

**Thank you for the reviews!**

**So...do people actually want a Season 5? Because as flattered as I am that they want this saga to continue, I kind of feel like I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel already and that Season 4 hasn't been anywhere near as good as Season 3. That said, I do have a vague idea so, for the benefit of anyone reading this in several months time who can't be bothered to click on the link at the top of the page and check my profile, I will be posting Season 5 from September. Might be a format change, since I'm not sure the three-chapters-per-episode worked as well this time.**

**By the way, this one isn't over yet.**

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO**

Sutton had gathered everyone together at the Rybak house: Ethan, Jordan, Mads, Laurel and Char. Like her, Mads and Laurel had both found time to change out of their bridesmaid dresses but Ethan and Jordan still wore their now dishevelled wedding suits and Char was also still in the outfit she'd worn to the service.

Sutton looked around uncomfortably. It didn't feel right without Emma being there. Emma had always had plenty of ideas, even if Sutton hadn't always agreed with them or liked her taking the lead. Now, suddenly, it was up to her to do it.

"Okay,"she told them. "We need to crack this, quickly. For Emma's sake if nothing else."

"The police are looking into it,"Laurel attempted.

Sutton shook her head. "We can't rely on them, they've been slow on the uptake before." She glanced awkwardly at Ethan. "I don't mean to knock Dan…"

"I know you don't,"Ethan confirmed. "Don't worry, I think we should look into this too."

"What do we know that the police don't?"Mads asked.

"Are we ruling out Thayer?"Jordan wondered.

"That's what the police have done,"Sutton replied. "And I think we should too."

"I didn't get a vibe from him when we went to see him,"Laurel agreed. "I really think he doesn't know anything about it."

"So who does that leave us with?"Ethan wondered.

"My dad was late to the wedding,"Char said quietly. "Thought I'd say it before anyone else did."

"Did he tell you where he went?"Sutton asked.

"No, he just said he was doing something for Kristin."

"Like kidnapping her daughter?"Laurel asked sarcastically.

"We don't know that,"Mads admonished her.

"But we need to look at it,"Sutton decided. "We need to ask around town, see if anyone remembers anyone acting suspiciously."

"I can go to the club,"Ethan suggested. "Someone there might have seen something."

"Good idea. Laurel and I can talk to Kristin. Char, you and Mads go and see Peter. See if you can find out where he went."

"Should I go with Ethan?"Jordan asked.

Sutton shook her head. "No, you stay here. Dan might call. If he does, we'll need someone to pass the message on."

* * *

Ethan paused as he arrived at the club, unsure where to go next. He was about to make for the logbook when Jacob appeared from a back room. "Ethan! I heard about Emma. Is there any news?"

"I don't know. To be honest, I was hoping to get some news from you."

Jacob looked surprised. "From me? What did you have in mind?"

"Have you seen Peter Chamberlin this morning?"

Jacob thought for a moment. "Yes, he did come in earlier. He booked a table for two for this evening."

"Must have been for him and Kristin. What time was that?"

"Eight o'clock."

"That'd give him plenty of time to grab Emma, stick her somewhere and get to the chapel."

"You think Peter Chamberlin's the one that took Emma?"

Ethan sighed. "I don't know. I wish I did, I wish it was as simple as that, but it doesn't really make sense. The way he is with Kristin, it feels real. And Char, it'd mean hurting her and I don't think he'd do that…Who else have you seen this morning?"

"Well, I haven't been here all day. Let me check the logbook." Jacob took the tome out of the drawer and looked over it. "Yes, here's Peter, as you said. Various other guests and residents booking in and out. Here, take a look."

Ethan took the book from him and scanned the page. He recognised some of the names but none of them stood out as someone who'd have a reason to hurt him or Emma or anyone else connected with the Mercers. Then something caught his eye. "Justin Miller."

Jacob was surprised at the comment. "He's a friend of yours, isn't he? Wasn't he at the wedding?"

"Yes but he turned up late. But look here. According to this, he left the club at half past eight. Is that right?"

"I don't know, I wasn't here then."

"Well it doesn't take over two hours to get from here to the chapel. Where was he all that time? Has he come back to the club?"

"No, he hasn't been here since he checked out at half eight."

"Then we need to find him." Ethan turned away and took out his mobile as he hurried down the stairs out of the building. "Char? Forget your dad. I need your help with something."

* * *

Slowly, Emma was forcing her way back into consciousness. She lifted her head, her body aching from the uncomfortable position she'd been sitting in. She gasped as she realised the situation she was in, pulling at her bonds, desperately trying to free herself, all to no avail. She squinted in the near darkness, trying to make out her surroundings. "Hello?"she called. "Anyone there?"

There was no answer.


	27. Episode 9 Chapter 3

**Thank you for the reviews! So yeah, it seems people do want a Season 5 or something. And while I have seen some of Pretty Little Liars, I don't think it's inspired anything in this story. Not consciously, anyway.**

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE**

Char was sitting alone in the Rybak house when Justin entered. "I got your call,"he told her. "What's wrong?"

Char stood up and looked at him, a guilty expression on her face. "I'm sorry."

Justin looked at her in confusion. "What are you sorry about?"

Then he heard the footsteps behind him and turned round to see Sutton, Ethan and Jordan blocking his exit. Laurel and Mads stepped into view behind Char. "We want to have a word,"Sutton announced.

"Okay, sure,"Justin agreed. "What's all this about?"

"It's about Emma,"Mads answered. "And what's happened to her."

Justin looked suddenly nervous. "I don't know anything about that."

"Do we believe him?"Jordan asked of no-one in particular.

"I don't think we do,"Sutton answered.

"So you're going to tell us everything you know,"Ethan concluded. "And you'd better hope we like what you tell us."

* * *

Emma felt a mixture of fear and relief as she heard the door to the cellar opening. Being trapped alone in near-blackness had been unsettling but she knew there was a strong possibility that the person that had just entered was the person responsible for taking her there. Her mind flashed back to that moment in her bedroom, her last conscious memory before waking up there. She was sure she could remember the person she'd seen but it didn't make sense.

She heard footsteps as someone descended into the cellar. She could make out a figure standing in the shadows. "Hello?"she called. "Who is that?" The figure stepped into the light and she realised she'd been right. But it still didn't make any sense. She just stared in disbelief. "You?"

* * *

Justin had been forced to sit in a chair, the others standing over them. He looked from face to face. Ethan, Sutton and Laurel all looked ready to hit him if he gave them a reason to. Jordan and Mads were staring at him with disdain. Only Char showed any trace of sympathy. "Look, I don't know about any of this,"he protested.

"Now why don't I believe you?"Ethan asked.

"You suddenly start hanging out with us again,"Laurel pointed out. "After nearly a year of ignoring us, of acting like we don't exist. And at the same time, bad stuff starts happening again."

"The whole reason you came to town in the first place was to get revenge on our family,"Sutton added.

"On your dad!"Justin protested. "I never had anything against the rest of you. I could have hurt Laurel but I didn't."

"You live at the club,"Jordan pointed out. "You were right there if you wanted to attack me and Ethan."

"And you were late to the wedding,"Mads added. "At the exact same time that Emma went missing."

"Look, I like Emma,"Justin insisted. "I'd never do anything to hurt her. I tried to…" He broke off, suddenly realising he'd said too much.

"Tried to what?"Ethan pressed. Justin remained tight-lipped.

Char stepped forward. "Justin…I believe you. I don't think you want to hurt Emma. I don't think you're a bad person. But…I think Emma is going to get hurt if you don't tell us what's going on."

"I tried to stop him,"Justin said slowly. "I tried to talk him out of it. I went looking for him this morning but…I couldn't find him."

"Who?"Ethan demanded.

"My dad."

"Woah, wait, back up,"Sutton interjected. "Your dad? He's in town? Well, where's he been hiding?"

"He hasn't been hiding,"Justin replied. "He's been in plain sight all along. It's just no-one knew it was him." He glanced at Ethan. "You work for him." He saw the realisation in Ethan's eyes and nodded. "Jacob. Jacob's my dad. And he's got Emma."

* * *

**End of Episode Nine**


	28. Episode 10 Chapter 1

**I picked up another follower so welcome aboard to that person!**

* * *

**EPISODE TEN:** Get Me to the Church on Time

**CHAPTER ONE**

Emma stared at Jacob in astonishment. It fitted, of course: He had arrived in town shortly before things started happening, he had a connection with the club. But he had seemed so insignificant that they hadn't even considered him. "Look, Mr. Barton…"

"Don't call me that,"he snapped. "My name's Miller. Jacob Miller."

And then it clicked into place. So much so that it should have been obvious. "You're Justin's father."

"Justin…" Jacob shook his head. "He never understood. He hated me. Thought me weak. Thought I'd let his mother down. I was just thinking of him. I took the payout, let Ted Mercer keep his job. I was just looking to provide for us. It wasn't letting him get away with it, I was going to make him pay eventually. I was always going to do that. And then…then he was dead. He did get away with it. I could never make him pay. So I have to make you pay instead."

Emma tried her best not to panic but she could feel events slipping away from her. If Jacob really was responsible for everything that had happened, then he must be seriously unstable underneath the apparent rationality. "I know that what happened to your wife must have hurt,"she said carefully. "And I know it was my dad's fault. But hurting me, hurting my friends…it's not going to bring her back. And it's not going to help you."

"It'll bring Justin back,"Jacob snapped. "He'll see that I've done something, that I've avenged her death. I'll be the father he wants at last. We can be a family again."

* * *

Justin was sitting in the back of the car with Jordan and Laurel, while Ethan drove with Sutton in the front. "I kept telling Dad that I didn't want this,"he explained. "I tried to get him to stop but he just wouldn't. He was convinced that someone had to pay even if Ted couldn't. And then when he found out about the phone call…"

"You should have told someone about this before,"Laurel snapped.

Justin hung his head. "Yeah, I know. I just never thought he'd go this far."

"Even after he shot my brother?"Ethan asked caustically. Justin remained silent.

"What phone call?"Jordan asked, eager to move the conversation on.

"The one that Ted got while he was operating on my mother, the one that caused him to make the mistake. Dad had to ask around a lot, do a lot of digging, but he finally found out what it was all about."

"Was it Rebecca?"Sutton asked.

Justin shook his head. "Alec. Rebecca had just told him that she was pregnant and he told Ted."

"Pregnant with me and Emma,"Sutton realised. "So he blames us."

Laurel leaned closer to Ethan. "Are you sure that he's taken Emma to the club?"

"No,"Ethan snapped. "But I can't think of anything else."

"Ethan's right,"Justin agreed. "It's the only place in town that Dad knows well."

Sutton put her hands together. "Please let it be all right."

* * *

Emma struggled to free herself from her bonds. In front of her, Jacob had opened up a drawer to reveal a set of chemicals. He began pouring them one by one onto a piece of cloth. She could smell the chemical reaction, the poisonous gas it was producing, and it was making her gag even from that distance.

"Don't worry,"he told her calmly. "It'll be quite painless."

* * *

The car carrying Ethan, Sutton, Laurel, Jordan and Justin screeched to a halt outside the club just moments before the car carrying Mads and Char. "We called Dan,"Char noted as they all piled out. "He's on his way."

They hurried through into the reception but it was completely deserted. "Where would he have her?" Laurel wondered.

Justin shrugged helplessly. "I don't know."

"He's got a flat here,"Jordan suggested. "Maybe he's taken her there."

Then they heard a scream. Emma's scream. "The cellar,"Ethan realised. He led the way, smashing the door down and hurtling down the steps. And then he stopped. The others stopped behind him.

Jacob was in the process of trying to force the cloth covered in poisonous chemicals over Emma's face, Emma struggling desperately, when he realised he had an audience. He stopped and turned to look at them.

"Let her go!"Sutton shouted desperately, making a rush forward. Ethan caught her arm, worried about spooking Jacob. Jordan slipped an arm round Laurel while Mads and Char held each other.

"Jacob…we can end this,"Ethan said carefully. "No-one else needs to get hurt."

Dan and two officers came down the steps behind them but Dan gestured for them to stay back. Jacob scanned the crowd and picked out his son. "Justin!" He smiled, relieved. "I'm doing it, son. I'm finally going to do it for Mum."

"Dad…stop,"Justin begged him.

Jacob looked confused. "But…you always said…I mean, I know you asked me to stop but really…"

"I wanted to punish Ted Mercer for what he did to Mum,"Justin agreed. "But he's dead now. And Emma…Emma's my friend. She hasn't hurt anyone. Just let her go, Dad. This won't bring Mum back. And it won't bring me back."

Jacob deflated completely, the cloth falling from his hand. Dan motioned the officers forward. They took Jacob by the arms and led him out. Justin watched him sadly. Char put her arms round him, hugging him.

Ethan hurried to Emma and untied her. She got to her feet and collapsed into his arms. "You're late to our wedding,"he said quietly.

Emma smiled slightly. "I'll make sure I'm on time next time."


	29. Episode 10 Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

Sutton woke up, looked around at her surroundings and smiled. It was the first morning in a long time that she'd woken up in the trailer, Dan's arms wrapped around her. She felt him shift next to her and tilted her head round to smile at him. "Morning,"he greeted her.

"Morning,"she responded. She looked around. "You know, this place isn't so bad, really. I can see myself moving in here."

"You don't really mean that."

Sutton bit her lip nervously. "No,"she admitted. "But I want to. I really want to make this work, I want to be the sort of person who doesn't mess up what's good in her life because she doesn't appreciate it."

Dan gently stroked her cheek. "I don't want you to change,"he told her. "I love you just the way you are."

"What, even if I'll never be comfortable moving in with you?"

"Well…when we get to that stage, I'm sure we'll work something out."

Sutton smiled. Then she pushed back the covers and climbed out of bed, retrieving her clothes from the floor.

"You're itching to get out of here already?"Dan joked.

Sutton smiled. "After what happened last time, Kristin wants us all round at Emma's place as soon as possible." She planted a kiss on his lips, then skipped off in the direction of the bathroom.

* * *

Emma stretched in her bed and smiled to herself. She'd woken up feeling on top of the world once before and the day hadn't gone as well as she'd expected. But this time it felt even more certain. She knew that the rest of her life was about to start.

She pulled on a gown and headed out of the bedroom, to be greeted by Laurel emerging from the other bedroom and Mads appearing bleary-eyed from the kitchen, both of them still in their pyjamas. "My bodyguards sleep okay?"she asked.

"That couch is hard,"Mads complained.

"And I can't believe that used to be my bed,"Laurel added. "Guess I've got used to the one at Jordan's place."

Emma looked at them both and laughed. "Come on, you're supposed to be making me look beautiful! No offence but at the moment you look like you need more work than I do."

There was a knock on the door and a moment later Sutton and Kristin came in. Sutton gave her twin a hug. "Didn't get to say this last time round, so Happy Wedding Day!"

Emma smiled at her. "Thanks, Sutton."

Kristin took Emma gently by the shoulders and gave her a sad smile. "I've only known you for a couple of years and now you're all grown up."

"I know, Mum. Maybe you should think of it as gaining an adoptive son-in-law?"

"I'll try." Kristin patted Emma's arm. "So come on. This is your special day and we're going to make sure you enjoy it."

* * *

The Mercers' back garden had had chairs laid out and a stage prepared ready for the ceremony, with the celebrant having taken her place. Char and Peter were sat in one of the rows near the front and other friends and family were occupying the other seats. Ethan was surprised to see his father quietly enter the garden. The older man gave him a curt nod then took a seat near the back.

"Emma called him,"Dan explained quietly. "I think she wanted it to be a surprise."

"It's certainly that,"Ethan agreed.

Jordan and Justin were standing with them, Justin seeming slightly uncomfortable. "Are you sure you want me here?"he asked. "It was kind of my fault that things went wrong last time."

"Hey, if people blamed me for some of the things my dad did, I'd have no friends at all,"Jordan commented.

"Yeah, I know but…If I'd spoken out about Dad sooner, it might not have gone that far."

"Look, all of us here have made mistakes,"Ethan told him. "You helped us find Emma in the end so we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you. Thank you."

Dan noticed Laurel appear at the end of the aisle and make wild gesticulations. "I think we're on,"he commented.

The string quartet in the corner began playing and then Emma appeared, holding onto Kristin's arm, with Sutton, Laurel and Mads trailing in her wake. Given the state her first wedding dress had been left in after her kidnapping ordeal, she'd trade it in for a simpler white dress, with her hair pinned up and decorated but no veil. Ethan thought he'd never seen anyone look so beautiful.

They joined hands and faced each other. "Emma, before I met you I didn't think I was worth much," Ethan stated. "I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life drifting, never achieving anything, in and out of jail. And then I met this brave and beautiful girl that I couldn't help falling in love with and I thought that if I could be there for her, be a shoulder for her to cry on, a hand for her to hold, then I'd have done something worthwhile with my life. And somehow you ended up falling in love with me too and I want to thank you for that. And I'm going to go on being there for you whenever you need someone for the rest of my life."

"Ethan, you were the first person to look at me and see me for who I really was,"Emma told him. "Before I met you, I didn't have a family, I didn't have a home, I didn't have a future. And the only reason I've got those things now is because you gave them to me. You're my home, my family and my future. You're the only man I've ever loved and all that I've ever wanted. You're the best man I know and I'm so grateful you came into my life. And I never want you to leave it."

They recited their wedding vows, their eyes, and the eyes of almost everyone else present, glistening with tears of happiness. The celebrant smiled at them. "By the power invested in me by the State of Arizona, I now pronounce that you are husband and wife."

The kiss that followed went on a long time.


	30. Episode 10 Chapter 3

**Thank you for the reviews and follows!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 3**

The garden had been cleared of seats and the party that had followed had gone on well into the night. Laurel had got in touch with her bandmates who were playing in a corner of the garden. Laurel herself was dancing with Jordan, both of them only having eyes for each other. Sutton was with Dan, the two of them kissing softly. Emma, safely ensconced in the arms of her new husband, looked from one of the couples to the other and smiled. "What's got you tickled?"Ethan asked.

"Just wondering which of my sisters is going to get married next."

Ethan smiled at her. "That's my Emma. Always on the lookout for a happy ending."

"I just want everyone to be as happy as us." She kissed him softly.

Nearby, Justin and Char were standing a little apart from each other, gently swaying to the music. "Thanks,"he told her.

Char looked confused. "For what?"

"For still wanting something to do with me after everything that happened."

"Oh, that." Char waved a hand dismissively. "So how is your dad?"

Justin sighed. "They're still not sure if he belongs in jail or a lunatic asylum. Either way, he's not coming out for a long time."

Char took his hand. "Well, you've still got us."

Justin smiled at her. "You are an incredible girl, Charlotte Chamberlin."

"I get told that often." She sighed. "Well…actually, I don't."

Justin slowly leaned in towards her. Realising what was about to happen, Char tilted her head back. Justin's lips touched hers and they kissed, softly and lovingly.

Kristin touched Emma on the arm. "I'm going to turn in now. I don't think I can stand the pace like you young ones can." She hugged her surrogate daughter. "I'm really pleased for you." She glanced at her new son-in-law. "Welcome to the family, Ethan." She walked through the garden towards the house, pausing next to Sutton and then Laurel to say good night to them. As they watched, Peter also detached himself from the crowd and went over to Kristin. He took her hand and they headed inside together.

The three sisters slowly moved so that they were all standing in a line, watching the house, an unspoken thought passing between them.

"Okay,"Laurel said at last. "I think we'd better make sure no-one goes in the house for a while."

* * *

Kristin and Peter climbed the stairs to the bedroom and stood there, facing each other. "So…here we are," Peter commented awkwardly.

"Yes,"Kristin agreed. "We are." They were silent for a moment.

"Are you sure you want me here?"Peter asked at last.

"Peter…I saw my daughter get married today. And I don't think I've ever seen a person that much in love. And in a way, that's sad, that not many of us ever feel like that. So when the opportunity comes along, they should seize it with both hands. And the closest I've come to feeling like that in many a year is when I'm around you."

Peter looked her in the eye and saw she meant it. He took a step forward and stroked her face gently. "I love you, Kristin."

"I know. And I think I might just love you."

They kissed, long and hard, with barely restrained passion. She helped him out of his jacket and began unbuttoning his shirt, as he unzipped her dress and let it fall to the floor.

* * *

Ethan and Emma tried to make their exit from the party as discreet as possible but several pairs of eyes were on them nonetheless: Sutton, Dan, Laurel, Jordan and Mads. Sutton looked round at her boyfriend. "Well, that's the happy couple gone, guess our duties here are discharged. You going to take me home?"

"Yeah, sure, it's on my way."

"No, I meant are you going to take me to your home."

Dan smiled and kissed her softly, before taking her hand and leading her away.

Jordan turned to Laurel. "Are we going to make a move too?"

Laurel sighed and looked around the garden. "Actually, I think one of the family needs to be responsible here. See the stragglers on their way and make sure they don't trash the garden."

Jordan puts his arms round her waist and she leaned back against him. He kissed the top of the head. "It's okay. I'll wait."

Mads glanced over at them, aware that she was standing drinking a plastic cup of lemonade on her own. Justin was walking Char home so she was planning to get a lift off Jordan when he and Laurel left. She glanced around and noticed the band, who had been playing one last song for about half an hour. Her eyes alighted on their lead singer. It occurred to her he was actually quite handsome. "Laurel, what's your bandmate's name?"

Laurel had been just about to start kissing Jordan but turned round at the question. "Baz."

Mads looked back at Baz, who seemed to realise he was the subject of her attention. He looked at her and smiled. Mads smiled back.

* * *

Emma and Ethan were kissing softly as they entered the flat. "I should be carrying you over the threshold,"Ethan noted.

"Save it for another night,"Emma answered in between kisses.

They headed into the bedroom and sat down on the bed, gently carressing each other. Ethan paused in the kissing for a moment. "I love you,"he said quietly.

"I love you too,"Emma answered, her eyes filled with happiness. They resumed kissing as they lay down on the bed.

Night had fallen across Scottsdale. And for once, those who slept slept soundly.

* * *

**End of The Lying Game Season 4**

**Thank you to everyone who's followed this fiction. All comments are appreciated and welcome. If that comment includes the question "Is there going to be a Season 5?", instead of asking without logging in so I can't reply, click on the link to my profile that you should find near the top of this page, look in the Also By The Same Author bit and see if it's there. Note that if it isn't September 2014 yet, it probably won't be. See you all around some time!**


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